Diary of an American Witch Chapter 2
by Heather Stowe
Summary: Here is chapter two.  Ill relaease chatpter three Wednesday.
1. Chapter 1

Preface

My grandmother gave me this journal to write in. She says that all the girls in our family get one at our age that look like this. I am terrible about writing in journals. I just don't see the point in writing about a boring day.

Don't be surprised if you see large gaps in the days. The last one I had collected dust before I remembered to write in it. I will try to fit this in my bedtime routine. So before I begin this I'm apologizing. Today was my birthday and as you will see a lot of things happened.

Chapter One

A normal day? Not even close.

Wednesday, June 6th

"Ugh why can't I just get back to sleep," I complained to myself as I wrapped myself back up in my favorite quilt. I wasn't exactly happy being woken up from the wind chimes from the patio. As the cool spring breeze from the window pushed the white lace curtains around, I laid there wondering what Mom had planned for me today. Today is my sixteenth birthday and she never, and I mean never lets anyone get away without celebrating.

The oak tree that was outside my window hiding the golden morning sun rise that held a few puffy clouds reminded me I had a long day ahead of me. I stayed in my warm bed debating whether or not to get up. According to my alarm clock it's six in the morning. Last night was a haze between asleep and awake.

I woke up in the middle of having a weird dream and I wanted to go back to sleep to try to continue it. I dreamed that I was with my best friend Jenny Barnes and her brother Michael. He was driving their father's convertible with the top down on the highway. I remember we were picked up from school to head to the local mall and I was sitting in the front seat as my long light brown hair blew in the wind.

I looked back at it and I knew there were a few things wrong with it. First, Michael wouldn't be allowed to drive Alan's car. It was a collector's car and he spent a lot of time restoring it. Second, Michael couldn't pick us up from school. He's a senior at a private school in Washington State. His school was near his best friend who happens to be my older brother Ricky's private college. I haven't seen either one since spring break a few months ago.

Not only was today my birthday, but it was the last day of school. Since I couldn't get back to sleep I got up early so I can prepare for the traditional birthday kidnapping. I knew Jenny would be here soon to follow through on her plans. Our tradition was to make each other go to school in pajamas on their birthday. One of us would arrive at the other's house early in the morning, not giving you get the chance to get dressed.

I got Jenny pretty good this year. Her parents Katie and Alan joined in on the joke by having her sleep in late. She was wearing a set of baby pink footed pajamas. Katie _conveniently_ forgot to wash her pajamas. She changed into her gym clothes for class and didn't change out of them. As Alan would victoriously say, "The king of pranks strikes again." I didn't know who had more fun with the joke, me or Alan.

This year I had a different plan. I would be waiting in a set of pajamas that would be decent. Last year I fell back asleep and I ended up going to school in my flannel night gown, rollers in my hair, and an avocado mask she added at the last second. I made it to the locker room before first hour for gym class and changed into gym clothes. Today I would be ready wearing my blue sweat pants and tee shirt from my favorite rock band. I thought hiding another set of clothes in my back pack would be my best defense against total humiliation. This year I was prepared. If all else failed I could change into my gym clothes again.

Something weird happened during my shower. The shower head was leaking again making the water distribute unevenly. I got really annoyed when I was having a hard time rinsing my hair out. Like many things in the house Dad was procrastinating on fixing it. "I wish this stupid shower would just fix itself," I said. Right after I said it there was a flash of light in the bathroom. I couldn't tell where it was coming from because I had my eyes closed. It was probably the sun reflection off a car driving by. Then out of nowhere it happened; the shower was working perfectly. If my Gran was here she would tell me it was just simple birthday luck.

When I got dressed my so called pajamasand my clothes were in my back pack I knew I was ready for the day. I sat down at my vanity and started reading my favorite book. Dad makes fun of me and thinks I don't pick up any new books. Sometimes the classics are worth reading over and over again. This was my second copy of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and the pages were starting to fall out. I was just starting to read Topsy's antics when a knock at the door made me feel as if I was jumping.

When I answered the door I wasn't surprised to see that it was Jenny. When she came in she wished me a happy birthday. I noticed she had a new haircut. She now had shoulder length brown hair. It framed her face nicely making her blue eyes stood out in contrast. We both looked at my backpack at the same time. "I wish my clothes were in my locker at school," I muttered to myself. Jenny picked up my back pack. I tried to grab it from her to avoid her looking in it. We played a tug of war with it for a moment. Knowing she was stronger than me I gave up knowing she would win. I always had gym clothes as a backup. She opened it up and looked for a change of clothes. "No," I gasped as Jenny laughed at me.

"I got you this year. So are you ready for your birthday make over?" I looked in the vanity mirror I noticed the circles under my dark blue eyes gave away that I had an uneven night of sleep.

"I'm still in my pajamas and I don't have the night gown and avocado mask any more. I threw them out after last year," I told her with a smirk. I was hoping she wouldn't remember the rollers. With the way our families are always playing pranks on each other, I wouldn't be surprised if she had something else in mind for a backup.

"You're no fun," She said before sticking out her tongue at me. I threw a pillow at her to make her laugh. "Come on your mom says breakfast is ready." I grabbed my back pack walked down the hall to the kitchen. The long narrow hallway was filled with pictures of my brother and I growing up. Mom used a new kind of glue that made the pictures stick to the walls. She said only a special solution would remove it. If it were up to me all of the pictures should be thrown in the fireplace and burned.

"Good morning honey. Happy birthday, I made some biscuits and gravy. If you want I can whip up some bacon and eggs," Mom offered as she poured a glass of juice for herself. With the wonderful smell of the food lingering in the kitchen I couldn't wait to eat.

"No Mom this is perfect, this looks great. Thank you." Mom handed me a plate as I went to sit down at end of the table near the sliding glass door. She was dressed for appointments at the clinic in her lab coat over her clothes. Her long blonde hair was pulled back in a bun showing off her dark blue eyes.

"Good morning everyone, happy birthday Princess," My dad's booming voice and Welsh accent filled the room. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a brown polo shirt that matched his eyes. Fridays were a casual day at the office for him. I could never tell if he was in a better mood on Fridays because of the arriving weekend or that he didn't have to wear a suit. My parents moved here just after my brother was born. Mom is a doctor here in Bellevue, Nebraska and my dad is an F.B.I. assistant director in a top secret specialty field. It's funny how two people from different ends of the world come together.

Mom was from Peabody, Massachusetts and Dad was from Cardiff, Wales. He came over to the United States as a foreign exchange student and married Mom right after high school. Visiting my dad's side of the family is an annual spring break tradition. Despite the long flight and customs hassles was always worth it. No matter where I was in Wales the view was always breathtaking. Nothing compares to beauty of the rich rolling green hills of The British Isles.

"You made my favorite, you didn't have too," Dad kissed Mom before he grabbed his food. She pulled something off of his thick light brown goatee. "Thank you Lovey," he said smiling at her while he walked to the table.

Biscuits and Gravy was one of Dads favorite things to eat. I was told when he first heard of biscuits and gravy they were on a double date with Alan and Katie at the Fort Crook diner. Dad freaked out wondering why Americans ate gravy on biscuits. In Wales they call cookies biscuits and biscuits scones. Mom had to explain to him the difference between them. Once he tried them and it has been his favorite breakfast ever since. Whenever Dad is eating cookies around him, Alan asks Dad if he wants gravy for it. It has been a running joke for several years. Dad says it's because of Alan's love of laughter is why he keeps the joke going.

Living next door to my best friend is the coolest. Her Dad Allen is the President at a private school system and Katie is a writer and teaches writing courses at the community college in Omaha. Like my parents they are from different parts of the country. He is from Louisiana and Katie is from here in Bellevue. Just like Jenny and I, Katie and Mom have been best friends all of their lives. Over the years Alan and my dad have become good friends. For the longest time our brothers didn't like each other but a few years ago that changed. I don't know what happened between them but Mom says it was a miracle.

While Jenny and I were eating Ricky showed up. I was surprised to see him. "When did you get back from school," I got up to give him a hug. To look at my older brother you can clearly see both of my parents. He looked exactly like Dad but had Mom's hair color. I didn't know who I took more after. I've never seen a picture of her, but everyone on my Mom's side of the family says I look just like one of my ancestors on the Mc Gill side from a few hundred years ago.

"Hey Squirt I got back late last night. They wanted us to stay another night, but Mike and I wanted to come home early together." His college graduation is this Sunday afternoon. "Mom, are you still planning on the flight to Seattle for Sunday?"

"I'll get back to you later on that. Grab something to eat before it gets cold." Ricky laughed at her as if there was a joke I was missing as he sat down to eat.

Mom dropped us off at Bellevue West High School on her way to the clinic. When we got there Jenny looked at me and started to cry. "I remember when we moved next door to you. It's nice how we became close friends living next door to each other," Jenny started to tear up. The school was busy with parents dropping off their kids and wishing them a good day. The other kids walked by us as if we didn't exist. I could only focus on Jenny. I hated to see her so upset. I was wondering what was wrong with Jenny and I'd better ask before we got inside.

"Ok spill it, what's wrong, it's the last day. Don't forget we will be the first to graduate Obama Senior High next year. You should be excited."

"I can't tell you," she sobbed. "I mean I promised my parents I wouldn't, tell anyone not even you. They said you would find out in time, but it's really big news. It's just you and I trust you with everything. You have to promise not to tell anyone I told you."

"I promise now tell me," I begged her.

We both stopped in front of the flag pole. The J.R.O.T.C. students were putting up the flags for the day. Their chrome helmets and blue Air Force uniforms made them stand out from the other students. "Alright, my parents told me back on my birthday I would be going to different high school than Obama High. All I know is it's a private school in South Dakota. That's all I can tell you because that's all I really know."

"Wow I can't believe it. South Dakota. There's nothing up there but Mount Rushmore," I said with a light laugh. I was trying to make light of the situation. I knew there was something she wasn't telling me. I didn't want to push it because she was already upset.

We walked past the bike racks that were full of chained up bicycles. Some kids were running in to the building trying not to be late. We were casually walking through the oversized gray double doors when the school diva Bethany Willingham snuck up behind us. Bethany thought she was better than everyone else when all she was just a bully in a dress. I don't know why but since we first met in kindergarten we've never gotten along. I guess some personalities just don't click. In a way I'm glad were not friends. There's no way I could hang out with someone as mean as she is. "Nice outfit, where did you get it, the thrift store?" She and her little minion crowd of friends laughed. As usual I ignored her as we kept walking to class.

"Well at least you won't have to deal with her next year," I whispered to Jenny.

We rushed through the increasingly crowded hallway to our lockers. When I finished fumbling through the combination I opened my purple locker door. The clothes I hid in my back pack earlier were folded in my locker. This was weird and I had no idea how they got there. I knew I put them in my back pack. I took advantage of the situation. I quickly closed my locker most of the way so Jenny didn't see them.

"Hey Jen I will meet up with you in History. I have to go to the bathroom."

"Okay don't be late, and no changing into your gym uniform like you did last year. Besides you know how cranky Mr. Oliver gets when someone is late."

I waited until she was out of sight when I stuffed the clothes once again into my back pack. I held the back pack in front of me to make sure my clothes didn't disappear again. I rushed to the bathroom and changed clothes in one of the stalls. Once I was dressed I looked in the mirror. I pulled out a hair brush and hair tie and pulled it back as the warning bell rang. I ran down the now near empty hall way to my American History class. Mr. Oliver looked like he was not surprised to see me barely make it in time. The young teacher with very short brown hair was a favorite of most of the girls. "Miss. Miller once again you skated in just in time not to be late." I sat at my desk behind Jenny in the back of the room. She looked at me annoyed. I could hear her mumble something about me being a cheater.

The classroom walls were bare. Just a yesterday they were filled with maps and weekly trivia assignments. It was all gone; even the chalk board was clear. The oversized globe that sat to the right of his desk was also was also missing. I thought was prepared to do as little as possible on the last day of class. The class hour was the typical last day of school routine. In exchange for the books, Mr. Oliver would tell us our grades.

I did better than I thought I would in this class. I expected a b or c. "Another A plus for Miss. Miller," he told me loud enough for the class to hear. When I sat back down Bethany shot me a resentful look. I think she was jealous.

"What's with the change of clothes Sarah," Bethany asked dryly.

"Number one, to be more comfortable, and second to disarm you from tacky jokes all day," I answered her in the same tone.

"May I have your attention students," Mr. Oliver started pacing in the front of the room. I thought he was going to be giving us a lecture. "Now that business has been taken care of, some of you may have heard I will be leaving here to take a teaching position at Obama Senior High. I am sorry to inform you the rumors were wrong and right. I have taken a position at another school. However it is in another state and I won't see you as you had anticipated at Obama. "Some of the girls gave a disappointed sigh." Because it's the last day for all of us relax, and chat amongst yourselves." Jenny and I talked with some of the other students about general things. What seemed to be only a moment later the bell rang and all of us said good bye to Mr. Oliver.

"Jenny, last chance for the prettiest girl at Bellevue West to go out with me before the year ends." I heard a squeaking boy's voice behind me as the class left.

"Conrad Ullman I wouldn't go out with you even if you paid me," Jenny responded to a boy who was slightly taller than me with brown shaggy hair. This was about the hundredth attempt from Conrad asking Jenny out. I could tell he was trying his hardest to think of a comeback.

"Well as I have said before, I don't think it would work out; there are all those girls who will do anything to go out with me and…,"

"Can it with the movie quotes," Jenny interrupted. "I have been telling no since the fifth grade and my answer will stay the same." She sighed. "To quote the same movie; I just don't think you can handle going out with a classy woman such as me." She patted Conrad on the back. Conrad shook his hair away from his light brown eyes and turned to go to his next class. As he walked away I could see the color in her cheeks brighten while she was hiding a smile.

The rest of the day was similar to first hour. We cleaned out then turn in our books, found out our final grades and just talked with our friends. Most of us talked about normal last day of school stuff. The best part about the last day of school was it was an early dismissal. One o'clock was here and we said good buys to all of our classmates. Some we; I mean I, would see next year and others would be staying here at Bellevue West Senior High School. We cleared out our lockers and threw out what we needed to. Jenny threw everything out of her locker except a picture of us when we were in the sixth grade at a camping trip in California.

My backpack felt much lighter than usual. When we left the littered hallway we felt like we were racing all the other students trying to leave the building. I was thrilled that I was now finally on summer vacation.

As we got outside the school door we were greeted by a tall muscular junior wearing his purple and gold letterman's jacket. Jesse Silver became the popular athlete after Michael transferred to his private school. Jesse towered over me by at least half a foot. I was the fourth chemistry tutor he had this year alone.

"Hey Sare-bear, I just wanted to say thanks for helping me pass chemistry class. If I didn't pass coach said he would take me off of the team." I hated him calling me that. No matter how many times I asked him to stop, he wouldn't. I was glad he would be staying here at West while I transferred to Obama. His military style haircut enhanced his brown hair and hazel eyes. He was hitting on me constantly since Delia's family was stationed in Hawaii last month. When they moved here about four years ago and Jenny and I were instantly friends with her. Her old house was across the street and it was still for sale. Since she moved it's been kind of hard on Jenny. Katie always referred to us as the three amigos. We both miss her and try to email her pretty much every day.

He's _so_ annoying. Even if I did want to go out with him I wouldn't feel right. You just don't date your friend's former girlfriend or boyfriends. Jesse's the guy most of the girls wanted to go out with him since Mike left. They can have him as far as I am concerned.

"Thanks, so how did you do," I asked him. I was trying to be polite, but inside I wanted to run away as fast as I could.

"I got a c, can you believe it. I've never gotten a c in anything before. My dad's going to be proud. I never would have gotten even a d if it wasn't for you. Thanks for not giving up on me like the other tutors did." He came over to give me a hug. He squeezed me so hard I couldn't breathe.

"Jesse put me down I'm suffocating," I said gasping for air.

"Sorry," he said putting me down. "So how is Mike doing these days?"

Jenny jumped in to save the day. "He's fine. I will tell him you asked about him," She answered. "We got to go, our ride is waiting for us," she said rescuing me from another attempt of him asking me out.

I recognized it our ride right away. Jenny's brother Michael was sitting on the hood of their dad's 1964 Mustang. I noticed his short sandy blonde hair didn't change from the last time I had seen him. He had the same baby blue eyes as Jenny had. I couldn't believe what I was thinking. I remembered he was good looking but whoa baby. Not only is he buff but he's a full blown hottie_._ As he greeted us my heart feel like it was skipping a beat. This was something I totally didn't expect.

"I'm surprised Dad let you touch his precious car let alone drive it to come and get us," Jenny commented. I could tell she was envious by the tone of her voice.

"It's not Dad's anymore, he gave it to me for a graduation present," he said with a smirk. The crowd of kids admiring the classic car didn't seem to bother him. I always dreamed of riding in it. Alan only drove it once a week to a classic car show on Sunday afternoons. I remember when we were kids Michael and Ricky climbed in and pretended to drive somewhere when Alan was not home. If he ever knew they played in the car they would be in a lot of trouble.

"No fair, I can't believe he gave it to you," Jenny said as she went to sit in the front seat.

"Sarah should sit in the front." He surprised me by holding the door open for me. When he held the door open Bethany and her little crowd of friends stared at me.

"What about me," Jenny pouted.

"You have sat in the front seat a hundred times with Dad driving. This is her first time in the convertible. It wouldn't be fair for her to sit in the back seat." Jenny walked around to the other side of the car to get in. I sat on the white vinyl bucket seat in the front. It was more comfortable than I expected.

"Okay. But I got shotgun next time," Jenny said while climbing in. Mike started the engine announcing its presence. He revved up the engine just before he left the parking lot. He took off just before Mr. Lennon the principal came over.

I immediately noticed he was driving in a different direction then home. "Where are we going," I asked.

"The Willow Creek Mall," he responded. I never noticed it before but there was something about his voice I found to be smooth and velvety. I could talk to him all day long.

"Is there any reason why we are not going home? I think I already know, it's a way to stall for the birthday party for me right?"

"Your parents asked me to bring you two to the mall and let you two shop until five," he answered with a mischievous grin. I wasn't sure but it looked like the grin that meant trouble. I don't know how but I knew he wasn't lying but he was hiding something from me.

When we got to the mall it was only one thirty and we had a few hours to shop. Jenny and I went to see the fourth of "The Traveling Diary" movies. When it ended we walked around the slowly crowding mall and did some shopping. We went into our favorite fashion store "The Alabaster Pot" to look around. The dimly lit store was packed with the newest clothes. The store was neat and in pristine order as usual. As soon as you walked in you can smell the cologne or perfume they sprayed everywhere. Jenny and I went straight to the clearance section to see if they had anything good on sale. I loved their clothes but I could never afford them on my minuscule allowance.

After three or four outfits we tried on, we settled on what we were going to buy. When we checked out the store manager rang us up. The tall, blonde manager was always nice to us. I was always envious of her. Kelly looked like she could be a model for these clothes.

"I notice the two of you in here a lot. I hope you don't mind, but how old are you two?"

"Sixteen," We said at the same time.

"Wonderful, I was hoping to offer you two part time jobs now that summer is here. Anyways here are your items and your change. I gave you an extra ten percent off for customer appreciation. When you ask your parents if you can get part time jobs come and see me. The best part about working here is fifty percent off new items."

On our way out of the mall we stopped at an antique store. The grandfather clock chimed reminding us we only had fifteen minutes left. This was one of my other favorite places in the mall. It was a small but crowded and not a space left empty. Mr. Jakes filled it with things I only saw at my grandmother Miller's home. There were swords, shields, tapestries and paintings on display. A full soldier's amour that stood six feet tall always reminded me I was short. But then again five and a half feet tall isn't that short. Nothing caught my eye today until I saw a necklace in the locked case by the register. It was exquisite. The blue background and white rose was set with a silver chain was a masterpiece that would not be cheap.

"Sir how much is this necklace?"

"Nineteen ninety five My Lady," Mr. Jakes replied with his Scottish accent. He always had nice manners and treated everyone as if they were royalty. "I just got her in yesterday. Quite the beauty she is." He pulled the necklace out of the case with his aged and shaky hands to show me. "Do you know much about cameos," he asked me.

"No, sorry I don't," I answered.

"Each one is unique. True cameos are created by hand and it is near impossible to duplicate such craftsmanship. Would you like to try it on?" I put on the necklace and admired it in the mirror. It was a perfect fit. "Would you care to purchase this one today my lady?" I couldn't afford it after the hoodie I just bought. I contemplated for a moment on returning it.

"I will just have to see if it is here after I get my next few allowances," I told him as I took started to take the necklace off.

"Such a shame, she seems to be a good match for you. Well, I hope she will be here when you can take her home. If it she's meant to be yours then she will be here the next time."

"It's time to go." I jumped as I heard an expected voice. Michael caught me off guard. My heart started to race for no reason. I wondered how long he was watching us. Turning to look at him I nearly blushed.

"How long were you standing there," I asked him trying to scold him. No matter how hard I tried it didn't work.

"Long enough to see you were really into the cameo story, but sorry we need to go now."

"Thank you," I said to Mr. Jakes as Jenny grabbed my arm and we walked to the car.

We didn't pay much attention until we got to the car, but Michael wasn't there. I looked back at the mall entrance for him and I didn't see him. "Where did he disappear to? Should we wait here or go looking for him," I asked.

"Let's wait here, he probably met some pretty girl and decided to talk to her," Jenny responded. The thought of him talking to a pretty girl made me envious of whoever she was. I couldn't even come up with a reasonable explanation of why I would be jealous.

We waited about five minutes before he Michael got to the car. "Sorry I had to… make a quick stop." He quickly closed his phone and placed it in his pocket as if he was hiding something. "Now let's go home."

Jenny sat in the front seat. The traffic was almost nonexistent. It was strange for Friday rush hour. I sat behind Michael and the wind blew the scent of his cologne in my direction. It was the best cologne I have ever smelled. I didn't know what it is about it I liked so much. I sat back and let my hair blow in the wind during what seemed to be a short ride home. I didn't let it bother me because I couldn't stand slow traffic. There nothing more obnoxious than when you can walk faster than the car is moving.

When we arrived home there was no hiding the cars from us. There was an empty spot waiting for us in the Barnes' driveway. As I tried to move the seat up so I could get out, Michael's hand stopped mine. His warm hand sent goose bumps up my arm. "One Minute let me open it for the birthday girl," he said smiling at me. I could feel the blood rush to my cheeks. I wanted to smile back at him but I don't want to send the wrong message. I wasn't sure if he was flirting or being nice. I didn't want to assume anything when he doesn't feel the same way about me…I think? I took a deep breath to compose myself. It didn't last for long. I tried to distract myself by thanking him as he holding the door for me.

I reached for my shopping bags noticing he already had them. Turning around to thank him for carrying them for me the intoxicating fragrance of his cologne caught me off guard again. It smelled so good it distracted me. Again I wondered if he was flirting or being nice. I had to be rational about this. There's no way he could be flirting with me. He's Jenny's brother and he's only being nice. It's just his way of stalling my arrival. I know my Mom pretty well and I know she can't bear to have a birthday without throwing a party.

Walking into Jenny's house I could smell the overpowering hickory from the barbeque pit from the back yard. We walked up the short flight of stairs into the house that was identical to mine. When we got inside I noticed nobody was inside. "Maybe they are in the back cooking out. It smells like your dad is burning a cow again," Jenny suggested.

As we walked to the sliding glass door. I could see the backyard was filled with people. "Okay let's go and get this over with," I groaned. When I walked through the sliding glass door everyone yelled "Surprise!" Standing on the patio made me feel like I was on stage. Looking out at all of the people I knew I needed to join them so I didn't get nervous. Several years ago our families decided to take down the chain link fence between our back yards making it one big joined yard. Behind our houses was the forested area. It made events like this nice because we didn't have to worry about disturbing the neighbors in the back of the house.

The tables decorated with pink and white and balloons. If Delia were here she would say it looks like a pink party threw up all over the back yard. The cake was three tiers high with white and pink smooth fondant and icing flowers on it. I didn't think turning sixteen would be such a big deal. I don't even think my brother's college graduation party last weekend was this big.

My grandmother McGill was the first to greet me. Her red hair was pulled back into a roll beautifully showing the little grey strip of hair on the side. She looked like a manicured older version of my Aunt Vickie. "Happy birthday Sarah," she looked around then started to talk to me in a lowered tone. "I know today is a big day for you. I was wondering if anything out of the ordinary happened today." This was a weird question to ask. But then again I always thought my family was a little on the…abnormal side. I wanted to tell her about the clothes in my locker this morning but she would think its way to strange. Now that I think about it, the dream I had about Michael came true. I probably overheard someone talking about plans for today and forgot about it. It took me a few seconds to get the courage to tell her what happened today but Dad came to the rescue. This was one time I was glad he butted into my conversation.

"Would you let the girl enjoy her party," He asked her with a laugh. "Happy birthday Princess, you know your mother gets. Once she starts she can't stop," Dad said as he hugged me.

"What's the big deal with sixteen," I asked him.

"It's not every day you turn sweet sixteen. There is more to it but we will all sit down and have ourselves a chat over tea later," he said tapping his index finger on the tip of my nose. I thought this had to be something big. It felt like I was about to get bad news and this was the build up to it. I had to put my pessimism aside and greeted everyone. It felt like I hugged what felt like a hundred people.

I felt a small set of cold hands cover my eyes. I could tell they were my cousin Mary's. This was her favorite way to greet me. Although she lived in Sioux City, we are pretty close for cousins. "Happy birthday, guess who?" I turned around.

"Mary," I said loudly.

She hugged me excitedly. "It's so good to see you again. How long has it been a week? Oh and I never got the chance to thank you for going to my party last weekend. Thanks for the pen you got for me. I love it." Her long dark brown sleek hair hung perfectly past her shoulders. She was wearing a brown shirt that matched her eyes perfectly. This was the fourth party in the last two weeks our family has either had or gone to. Between Ricky, Mary and Michael all having their graduation parties and now my birthday party, I'm was sure she is just as tired of attending parties as I am.

"Thanks. I'm glad you liked it. Mom picked it out a few months ago. I think she knew the USB drive on the end of the pen would come in handy." Mary and I continued to talk about general things. Within a few minutes my uncle Paul came over to say hello to me. I was happy to see him here. He was one of my favorite relatives.

"Happy birthday Sarah, it's nice to see you've grown into a beautiful young lady." He hugged me and I could tell he forgot his strength again making my back pop. I had to push myself away from his near suffocating bear hug. One bear hug a day was more than enough. He was a few inches taller than I am with dark hair and eyes.

He was different from most of my family. He owned a restaurant in The Bronx. Dad never liked him for being on what he called the wrong side of the law. He said Uncle Paul is no good and if his wife Connie wasn't my mom's sister he would find a reason to lock him up. I didn't think he was a criminal or anything. If he was he didn't make it known to the rest of the family. "Thanks I'm surprised Dad isn't throwing a fit with you being here. The last time you two were here he forbade you to step inside of the house. Where is Aunt Connie? I want to say hello," I asked. All of us cousins were pretty close in age. I think our mothers decided to be pregnant together.

"She is at home making sure Rosie is studying for her finals. The kids don't get out of school for a few more weeks there. I'm not breaking any rules, not inside of the house technically. I noticed one of the boys here has his eye on you." He looked over at Michael. "Are you dating anyone? 'Cause if not I can set you up with one of the boys that work for me."

"Who Michael," I asked in complete shock. "No he just lives next door. Thanks but no thanks. You live in New York and I'm here. It would be little hard to date someone with all of that distance. I'm not sure if I am ready to start dating yet."

"Boy I wish your cousin Rosie was more like you and Saul. She has dated I don't know how many boys. She says hello. I wish she would study books more than boys."

"Hey how's Saul doing these days? Aren't he and Pauli Jr. graduating this year?"

"Yes they are graduating this year from the same school as I went to in upstate New York. Pauli, he is going to be working with me. He is running the restaurant while I am here. Saul's decided he is going to be a minister. I think that's the reason he doesn't want to date anyone. He says he wants to help others before himself. He's too much like his mother's side of the family.

He's at the restaurant working on straightening out the payroll for me. The accountant I just fired made a mess of everything. If he wasn't going into the ministry he would be a great accountant. I keep telling him all he's got to do is get on the internet and he can be license in a few minutes. He wants to go to school and do it the hard way. I better not monopolize the guest of honor. Happy birthday and don't be a stranger. Come by and see us sometime. We would love to have you over for dinner."

I wondered why he invited me over for dinner as if I live next door. It would take several hours to get to New York. He must be forgetting he is here in Nebraska. "Umm alright, thanks for coming," I told him just before he walked away.

Mom came over to me and guided me towards the cake. "You need to blow out your candles and make a wish," Mom called. Dad lit the candles and I could not think of a wish. I looked around for some ideas and I saw Jenny standing there. I couldn't help think about how much I would miss her. How hard it would be going to school without her. She was more than my best friend, she was like a sister. It was then it I knew what to wish for. I squeezed my eyes tight and imagined us going to the same high school.

"_I wish Jenny and I could graduate high school together_," I said to myself as I blew out all sixteen candles everyone clapped and cheered. After I cut out the first piece I noticed this was the best chocolate cake I've ever had. Mom took over cutting and serving the cake as I sat down and enjoyed my piece.

The next thing to do was open the presents. The table was over flowing with wrapped boxes and envelopes waiting to be opened. Grandma McGill handed me a black gift box with a gold ribbon around it. "This is something that all girls in the family get at your age," she told me just before I opened it. It was a beautiful burgundy leather bound diary. There was a golden oak tree on the top and the roots were woven together in a Celtic knot. I recognized the symbol right away. It was the same tree that my mom was on her favorite gold necklace. I remembered that Grandma and Katie had the same necklaces.

I thought I opened all of my gifts when I noticed there was another one. It was a small lavender box with a silver bow wrapped around it. There was no label as to who it was from. I opened it and it was the cameo necklace from the shop in the mall. I knew right away who it was from. I looked for Michael and he had a smile on his face giving himself away. "This is from the Barnes family," He said once I found him. I thanked him and all of Jenny's family while fighting blushing again.

Mary pulled me aside and began whispering to me. "What was that all about? Is there something going on between you two," she asked.

"He was behind me when I was looking at it at the mall and was the only one with the opportunity to get it. And no there isn't anything going on between us nosy." I pulled up my hair as Mary helped me get it on.

"I don't know, I think someone may have a thing for you?"

"Would you quit? First Uncle Paul, now you. Were just friends and besides he's probably going out of his way to be nice because it is my birthday."

"Oh come on, that boy has had it bad for you for years now. Whenever we are here for holidays he is always smiling at you when you are not looking. I can tell he likes you more than you think. I wouldn't be surprised if he asks you out."

"It's just not like that between us. He's my best friend's brother and Ricky's best friend. I've known him all my life and he's always been a brat to me. The stories I could tell you about what he's done to us would give you nightmares. Besides he probably has a handful of girlfriends stashed away somewhere. I highly doubt he likes me in that way." Mary rolled her eyes at me like she couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Okay well when he does as you out, don't be surprised to hear me say I told you so." She laughed.

"I will believe it when it happens. Besides it's not like you have any room to talk. I noticed you aren't seeing anyone. What's up with that?" I playfully mocked the way she said it to me.

"Nothing, literally nothing, well there is this guy back home I've known for a while and we keep in touch with each other. Lately he has turned into of my best friends. He's been working on his master's in education and starting a new teaching job this fall. He has little time to spare. He couldn't make the party last week because he had a final that day. Other than that there isn't anyone I am interested in. So now you know everything."

"Alright so when he asks you out, don't be surprised to hear me say I told you so too."

I was so busy between talking to guests and dancing the night flew buy. After escaping another dance from my clumsy cousin Kevin, I managed to make my way over to the cooler for a soda were Jenny, Ricky and Mary were hanging out.

Alan came over to talk to us as he was hanging up his phone. Dad says if there isn't a phone attached to his ear something is wrong. "Ricky, I just got official notice that Mr. Swain will not be returning in the fall to The Olympic Academy. They will be taking applications for a teaching position. With this being your strongest subject I thought you may want to put in your application for the position. If you would like to use me as a reference I would be happy to give you one." Ricky was excited to hear this news.

"Thank you I will put in the application online as soon as I can," Ricky said trying not to overreact. Alan got a phone call interrupting their conversation. He excused himself to take the call.

When I turned around to go and talk to more people. I noticed Michael was walking over to me. Everybody wanted to dance with the birthday girl today and I had to turn some of them down. It's not because I didn't want to dance, it was because my feet were already hurting. But Michael, he's the one person I would have made an exception for. I kind of wanted to talk to him and find out why he was being so nice to me.

Jenny came into view from out of nowhere surprising me. "Well happy birthday again," she said handing me a box. "I know Mike picked out the necklace at the last minute but I did get you something myself." I opened the box and it was a hard bound set of "The Traveling Diary" books we have been reading. I opened it and there was an autograph from the author K. Nichole Andersen on all four books.

"Wow this is so cool, when, how?"

"Mom helped me get it from an online auction. I knew once I saw it you would like it."

"Thanks Jen this is the best." I gave her a hug. "So long have you known about all of this?" By now Mike walked over and started to talk to Ricky. He's the one person I would have made an exception for.

"Mom told me about the party last night. I don't think she can trust me keeping a secret from you." She looked off to the other side of the party and out of habit I turned my head to see what she was looking at. It was someone I never wanted to see again. Matt Wheeling the neighborhood bully. His blazing red hair matched the terror he inflicted on us as kids. He was dressed in a military uniform walking towards us. I wanted to be polite and thank him for showing up but I also wanted him thrown out of the party. "Loser alert," Jenny said while rolling her eyes. "I wonder what _he_ is doing here," I heard her mutter as he approached us.

"Happy birthday, I won't stay long. I wanted to talk to the both of you. I want to apologize to both of you. I was mean to you two and everyone else in school. There is no excuse for how I behaved. I know I can't take back what I did, and I don't ever expect you two to forgive me. I just wanted to say that I am sorry." His small and narrow eyes looked like they were full of evil. For some reason I don't believe him. This apology felt like it was out of obligation and not remorse.

I looked over to our brothers and Mike was watching as if he was being protective of Jen as usual. He had a look on his face as if he was angry with Matt and he could easily snap him in two. "Thanks but you might want to go and talk to the guys and tell them what you told us, by the way nice uniform."

"Thanks, I just graduated from military school today and I will be leaving in two weeks for basic training. I decided to continue with the military and join the Air Force." He stepped closer to me. "You look nice too." I took two steps backwards away from him. There was a moment of awkward silence. "So Sarah, are you going out with anyone?"

Okay this was way too weird. First he terrorized me as a kid and now he's asking me if I am going out with anyone. "No I'm not. I am in no rush to start seeing anyone either." I could see the disappointment filling his eyes. It looked like I got my point across.

"Oh, well when you want to go out with me just let me know. I should get over to there and talk to them." He turned around in a military pivot turn and walked away showing off. I made sure he was out of listening distance before I said anything to Jen.

"Okay now that was weird. I can't believe he had the nerve to ask me out just after apologizing to us. He honestly thinks I want to be with him? Why is it when you don't want to date you are being asked out from guys you don't want to be with? Even if he wasn't mean to us I wouldn't go out with him. Ugh," I said shivering in disgust.

"Well at least you don't have someone chasing you. Conrad has been asking me out for a long time and he won't get it that I don't like him like that." Jenny said. I knew her taste in boys pretty well. If he cleaned up, I could see her going out with him.

Jen and I went over to the chairs that were set up by the table and sat down. I was exhausted from everything and enjoyed sitting down. "I wish I could find someone like my mom found my dad," she said.

"Me too, I don't just know the first thing about dating. I just wish that when I find mine I won't have to look far. I'm sure I will meet my knight in shining armor sometime."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

This is where my life changes…literally.

The party was finally over and I was more than ready for it to be done with. My feet were throbbing from all of the dancing. Jen was going to stay the night but Dad said no because we had to have our chat over tea. Whenever Dad says we need to have a chat it usually means a long discussion.

I went inside the house and sat at the table with Grandma ready to get this over with. She sighed when she noticed my parents were still outside waltzing the night away. "Alright kids time to come in," She yelled out the sliding glass door. "Don't forget we have some business to attend to." She turned around and grabbed Mom's favorite tea pot. "Tea Sarah," I held out my tea cup for some blueberry tea. As I inhaled the fragrance of my favorite tea my parents finally came in through the back door along with Katie and Alan.

"Sarah we need to talk," Grandma said. "Do you remember me asking you earlier if anything out of the ordinary happened today?" She gave me that I know everything look. I wanted to tell her everything but I didn't want to seem like I was crazy and they would probably admit me to the loony bin. She could tell I was hesitating. "Don't worry you know you can tell me anything. There is nothing that you can tell me that wouldn't shock me."

I took a deep breath and got the courage to tell her. "Well this morning I had a set of clothes in my back pack, because I knew Jen would make me go to school in my pajamas. When she came over this morning and looked in my backpack they were gone. The weirdest thing was when I got to school this morning and they were in my locker."

When she laughed I knew she thought I was insane. Clothes just don't jump out of a back pack and end up in a school locker. It's impossible.

"Sarah my dear, there is a simple explanation and there is something about you that you need to know. Everyone in this family that is different than most families." By this time the rest of the family already came in and sat down at the table including Alan and Katie. Grandma continued talking as if she were telling one of her great stories. "All of us here in this room are witches or wizards, including you. There is a very good reason why you didn't know until now. A spell placed on all American Witches and Wizards in 1696 to protect our people here in the United States. The spell is no one is to use magic until the age of sixteen.

In 1844 Ronald Elwes saw a need to train young witches and wizards. His theory was if you have magic abilities, then you should learn how to use them wisely. The first school was opened in New Orleans. Because of the success of the school, five years later his wife Elizabeth Elwes founded the all girls' school that I am the Dean of. You have a full scholarship to the North Central Magic Academy for Girls."

She pulled out a journal from her purse. It was similar to mine and she pointed to the tree on it. "You will see this symbol a lot once you are there. It is the schools logo. The tree of life represents the earth and how our roots are all joined together. Your mother, Aunts Vickie, Connie, Mary and Katie have a necklace charm with the emblem on it. Every girl gets one in gold who graduates at the High School Level, and then the college level gets platinum. The boys get a pin with their symbol on it.

North Central is not the same kind of school that you're used to. Ricky and Michael go to the Olympic magic Academy for Boys in Washington State. Ricky will be graduating at the college level and Michael will be graduating the High School level and continuing at the academy. Mary just graduated from North Central. She is starting the University of Nebraska at Lincoln this fall instead of continuing on with North Central's college.

We will need to be discreet about the family link between us. The first day of class is September second. There will be a bus to take you from Crescent, Iowa to school the day before. The good news is Jenny has magic abilities and will be attending there too." Grandma sat there holding her tea cup, smiling at me as if she was waiting for me to be surprised. The room was so quiet, a pin dropping would be loud.

This had to be a Joke. There is no such thing as magic. The king of pranksters himself Alan was here. I couldn't tell if he was smiling or trying to keep from laughing.

"Nice one guys," I said cynically. "I get it this is a joke. You can laugh at me all you want. I still don't believe you." They all looked at me like they couldn't believe what I was saying.

Dad sat up in his chair looking at me when he told me Granddad Jake passed away. "Princess this is no joke. The book series you read about the schools in England aren't that far off from the truth. There really is a magic world and you _really_ are a witch."

"Okay well then prove it," I challenged them.

Alan laughed at Dad. "See Rick I told you, you can't put anything over her. You get to mow my lawn this weekend. Here Sarah I'll show you." Dad lost another bet to Alan once again.

Alan pulled out a stick and pointed it to a spoon. "_RETRIEVE SPOON_," He told it. A soft golden ribbon made it disappear from across the table and popped in front of him. I picked up the spoon and looked at it. I wanted to make sure this isn't one of his cheesy magic show tricks. However my upside down reflection on the front of the spoon wasn't a trick. This was real. It's hard to believe but I can't argue with what I just saw.

I was in such disbelief I tried not to stutter. "So this means I am a witch? A real spell casting, broom riding, cauldron-potion-brewing witch? No way!" I sat there quiet digesting all of this information. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This would explain a lot of things that happened around here.

"Yes, as your grandmother said we are all witches or wizards honey," My Aunt Vickie answered. Her emerald green eyes caught my attention. They complimented her perfectly styled bright red hair. "But there have been some changes. We don't ride brooms anymore. An agreement was made with the FAA to ban all broomstick flying all over the world. We use mirrors for travel now. Cauldrons are still around but mainly used for potions in chemistry classes."

"You said Jenny's one and she would be going there too? So this means we will be able to go to school together," I asked excitedly.

"Yes and it also means you can do magic," she answered.

"Get out of here, I can do magic? Shut up!" The tension in the room eased a little bit. But I was still being stared at and I was uncomfortable about it. I had to say something. "So how do I know if I can?"

"I think you might have unknowingly cast one this morning with your clothes. But just to be sure I think a simple housekeeping spell could work. Jayne has the yard been cleaned yet," Grandma asked.

"No, it should be fine for her to clean it up. All of the mundane guests have left."

I walked to the back door I could see the left over party mess. There was a huge mess all over the yard. "It will take hours to clean this up," I complained.

"No worries were going to need a wand." Everyone in the room pulled out sticks that were similar to Alan's. Grandma handed me her wand to use. The small sleek wooden stick fit in my hand near perfectly. It was about 12 inches long, had a reddish tone to the wood with said Virginia Eloise Donnelley McGill in an elegant golden writing.

"Now just point and say a very simple spell, _clean_. Not only mean it but say it with some force, otherwise just a few items would be affected," Grandma said.

"Clean, it's that easy?" She nodded her head.

Alright I was ready. I pointed the wand at the mess of the back yard and said the spell

"_Clean_," I commanded at the back yard.

I watched a small golden beam of light flow out of the wand just like Alan's. All of the wrappings, paper plates, and cups made zoomed in to the trash can. The folding chairs placed neatly together and the tables were now pristine, stacked themselves one on top of another. I wouldn't have been surprised to see brooms and mops dancing around the back yard like that movie I saw once as a kid.

"Excellent now do it again but this time put the wand down on the table, point your right index finger at it and say Mise En Place. You have to say it firmly. It means everything in its place."

I did just what she asked me to do. Pointing my finger at the stacks of chairs and tables I commanded another spell. "_MISE-EN-PLACE_," I commanded this time. The same golden glow came from my finger. The stacks of tables and chairs made their way to the shed. Gifts and shopping bags floated into my room. Within a few seconds there was no sign of a party in the back yard at all.

Everyone in the room looked stunned to see what I just did. "Did I do something wrong," I asked them. By the looks on their faces I was afraid I have just made the biggest mistake in magic history and I've only known about my abilities for thirty seconds.

"No, no not at all," Grandma said smiling proudly at me. "Jayne, Rick it seems if we have a natural golden witch in the family."

"What's that," I asked. Alan sat up and started to speak as if this was his area of expertise.

"Sarah, there are six levels of witchcraft. It's the color of the beam from the wand. The color of the beam matches the color of the name on your wand. It represents the level of magic you are at. Most start at your age with a bronze beam. Then with practice they get to a silver level before they finish their senior year. It usually takes hard work and practice to get to a silver level.

Most witches graduate magic school at a silver level and then move on to golden within few years of constant practice. Then you can move on to hand spells. The levels start over again with the hand spells. You have skipped straight ahead to what is called the natural golden level. It is remarkable that someone your age is at this level."

Dad sat up to take over the conversation as usual. "However you will still be issued your own wand and will be expected to use it during your training. As you can see it is possible for some witches or wizards to cast spells without the use of a wand. Each spell cast leaves a trace or trail. Hand spells are harder to trace than wand spells and are highly discouraged. In order to be able to legally cast hand spells they would need to apply for a special license. That's where my job comes in.

I work for a division of the United States Department of Magic. We oversee all of the magical families and new people who were given the gift of magic with no magic heritage. I am the Assistant Director of the MFBI. It stands for Magical Federal Bureau of Investigation. We are in charge of the issue and tracking of magic wands, as well as magical federal cases.

The use of magic is of national safety and we need to know who has what powers. Owning a wand can be more dangerous than a gun in the wrong hands. That's why we have issuance and tracking procedures that we have. Having everyone registered helps us keep everyone protected. It's like someone who owns a gun needs to have a permit. If you are found guilty of committing crimes using magic, your abilities can be suspended or permanently revoked.

Just a few more things princess; first no matter what, you cannot tell anyone about this. It's for the protection and safety of witches and non-magic people. We call them the mundane folks. Most of them don't understand the gift we are given. There are still people in the world that are highly against witchcraft. Then there are the people that would like you to solve all their problems with the wave of a wand.

Second having magic abilities is a privilege and a big responsibility. The most important rule is never use magic to intentionally harm someone. Protecting yourself is one thing but one of our rules we abide by is to do no harm.

I know this must be a shock for you to hear this. But your mother and I are confident you can handle this maturely. Now we have had a long night and it's time we wrapped this conversation up."

"We must be getting home now. We will see you at Thanksgiving." My Aunt Vickie hugged me before they went to the basement to leave from the garage. Mary came over to say goodbye to me.

"Hey don't worry about North Central. You are going to love it there. It's much smaller than public schools and you don't have to worry about walking to school in the snow. The food is pretty good there too. E-mail me and tell me how it goes. And oh," she began to whisper. "Let me know how that Michael thing goes too."

"Okay, like I said before, there is nothing to tell." I fought blushing pretending to be mad at her for saying that.

After the bombshell was dropped on me I looked at the grandfather clock. It was ten o'clock. It was past my phone curfew and it was too late to talk to Jenny. I couldn't wait I was bursting with excitement. Not only were we both witches but we would be going to graduate together after all. "I wish I could talk to Jenny tonight," I muttered to myself as I sat and pouted on the plush living room couch when I heard a light knock on the front door. I wondered who would be coming over so late. The party was over and everyone went home already. I looked out the window to see who it was it was Jenny. I was excited to see her so I quickly answered the door.

It was Jen. "Your mom invited me over." She had her mini duffel bag, pillow and camping gear. "Let's camp out in the yard," she suggested.

Mom came out and cast a spell to set up the tent up under the weeping willow tree. It was our favorite place to put it up. I was disappointed that there wasn't any extra room inside the tent but this magic stuff is _so cool_. We stayed up for a few hours eating junk food and talking about what our new school would be like. To go to an all girls school and not have to worry about boys. No Conrad chasing Jen, no football jocks with sawdust for brains needing me to tutor them, and best of all no more Bethany. I don't know what it is about her, but there is just something I didn't like about her.

"Hey you two it's after one, time to go to sleep," we heard Katie tell us from the outside of the tent.

"Okay," we groaned.

We climbed into our sleeping bags and said good night loud enough for her to hear us. We were as excited as kids on Christmas Eve. We turned off the lamp, but talked for a few more minutes. Jenny fell asleep first. That's when I started to think about Michael again. I thought about how his blue eyes sparkled. His breathtaking smile that made me want to stare at him, and the smell of his cologne made me happy to be around him and calm at the same time.

"Wait what am I doing," I thought to myself. "It's Michael, Jenny's brother. I can't do this. I can't like him. It doesn't make sense."

I tried to think of something else to distract me. It wasn't working. "It's just a crush. Forget about him he's probably got a handful of girlfriends somewhere. He's only a friend, someone I grew up with," I told myself. No matter what I told myself it didn't work. I gave up and tried to get some sleep.

The bad dreams I had about Matt came back. I hadn't dreamed of him for at least a year now. I woke up in tears as Jenny was climbing back into the tent from a bathroom trip. I told her what happened in the dream. It was a flash back of one of the worst things he did to me. He nearly drown me swimming during a pool party a few blocks away. He kept dunking me and I hit my head on the side of the pool trying to get away from him.

No matter how hard I fought him over powered me. Once I hit my head I don't remember what happened after that. I was pulled out of the pool and someone had to perform CPR on me. I never found out who it was or got the chance to thank them for that. That was the last thing Matt did to me and until my party I hadn't seen him since.

It took a little bit to get back to sleep. But once I did the bad dreams started again then quickly left. I started to dream of other things. I had a dream I was dancing with Michael at some family event. When I woke up I was disappointed that it ended.

Thursday, June 7th

I couldn't get Michael off of my mind and it was _really_ irritating me. It felt like every time I turned around something reminded me of him. I'm not even going out with him and I am acting like a girl in a mushy teen romance novel. I knew a little bit about the way non magic people met, fell in love and got married. I had no idea if anything was different. I was in a completely new and different world and this part of it was making me nervous.

I thought the best person to ask was my mom. We were watching a home repair show and I noticed we were alone. My head was on a pillow on her lap on the couch like we used to do when I was small. Now would be the perfect time to ask. I looked up at her wondering if she would want to talk about this. "Mom, how did you and Dad meet? You never really told me much about it. I know he is from Wales and you are from Massachusetts but how did you two manage to get together with all of that distance?"

"I guess you are about the right age to know," she said as she turned off the flat screen television in the family room. Aunt Vickie was a handful for Mom and Dad. I was the book worm and she was the trouble maker and Connie was the fashion guru of the family. In the fifth grade your grandma and grandpa decided to send her to a boarding school until she was able to go to North Central. After doing some research the best one she found was Wales.

Within the first year she became good friends with Mildred Thomas. The two of them were much like you and Jenny, inseparable. What you have to understand about the magic world is our kind gravitates towards each other. I think that's one of the reasons why Aunt Vickie and Mildred bonded like they did.

One year, Grandma Virginia, Grandpa Jacob, Aunt Connie and I went to visit her over there over Christmas break. I met your dad at the Thomas's New Year's Eve party. We kept in touch while and became good friends, more like my best friend. That changed just before I started eighth grade when your dad asked me to be his girlfriend. Well it was a game of truth or dare. We walked to the garden sat down at the bench to talk, and at first it was normal stuff. He snuck one in on me and asked me if I was dating anyone. I told him no. Then I asked the same about him and he said no. He asked me if I wanted to be his girl and I said yes. From then on we were a couple. Then he got really sneaky by double daring me to let him kiss me so I did.

We kept writing to each other. He got a scholarship to transfer to the Olympic Academy his senior year as a foreign exchange student. He gave me his Olympic pin over Christmas break. Then at the Valentine's Day dance our high school senior year, he asked me to marry him. We had been together so long that we both understood we would end up married someday. That's about it, that's our story. Does that answer your questions?" I nodded my head. I was still thinking about how funny Dad was being sneaky enough to ask Mom out the way he did.

"I hope you don't mind me asking but is there anyone you are interested in? We've noticed you haven't dated anyone yet. I'm wondering if everything is alright in that department for you or if there was something you wanted to tell us."

I didn't want to admit I was thinking of Michael in that way and I didn't want to tell anybody else either. I decided to play it safe and not give any names.

"Well there is a possible interest, but I'm not sure if he likes me in the same way," I was trying not to blush. "I just wish he would make the first move. Something to let me know he is into me. Anyways it's nothing. I think it just might be a crush is all. After watching all of the drama with other kids in school dating I am in no hurry."

"I admire your maturity about it. But just remember; be careful what you wish for. Sometimes wishes in our world can be just as powerful as spells. "

"'Kay I will."

I thought I had my answers. I didn't know what it is about him that I liked so much. He was fun to be around and easy to talk to. I wondered if he did like me in that way. I decided to just wait. I thought that if I made the first move and he didn't feel the same way, I would look like an idiot. Like I told my mom, if he wants me then he will have to ask me.

Saturday, June 9th.

Today we left for Ricky and Michael's graduation. Dad was trying his hardest to get out of flying on a plane. "Jayney Sweetheart I can't see why we have to fly. You know they will ask me to help the air marshals keep an eye on the flight. I just want to sit back and relax and not have to worry about anything. Are you sure you can't get a refund for them," Dad pleaded with her.

"When I booked the trip last month I didn't know if Sarah would have magic abilities or not. They are non-refundable tickets." Dad gave her a defeated look and grumbled as he went to the garage to get the suitcases. I could hear him muttering something about not wanting to fly.

It was a routine non-stop flight. Complete with the typical check points. After the long flight we arrived at the SeaTac airport where Dad rented us a car. We drove a few hours south east to the school. This was my first time in Washington State reminding me of Wales. I could see the moss clinging to the tall tree trunks and tall trees as far as I could see. It looked as if we were driving to Mt. Rainier itself. The school was outside of the small town of Greenwater, Washington. We checked into a hotel close by. The plan was to stay the night, go to the ceremony then fly home tomorrow night. As you can see not much happened today; with the exception of a long day of traveling.

Sunday, June 11th

This morning we checked out of the hotel and headed to the school. It was the first time I would get the chance to see a magic school in person. The two story red brick building reminded me of a small courthouse. There were about twenty stairs from the street to the doors. Two lion statues were placed next to door one on each side. The inside looked like a normal high school. The royal blue and gold walls filled with signs congratulating the graduates. When we got to the auditorium I noticed it was starting to quickly get full. Aunt Vickie and Mary were joining us for the graduation ceremony. Mary's brother Kevin had to work and Uncle Erv had an emergency at his office.

"Mom, Dad I better check in and get my cap and gown on. I will see you later alright," Ricky said kissing mom on the cheek.

Mary sat next to me in the old wooden seats that flip back when you get up. Just before the ceremony Mom pulled out the video camera and was ready. Once we heard the music everyone stood up in the auditorium. All of the graduates walked in single file line from the back of the auditorium in their blue robes and caps to the stage and sat down.

Alan stood at the podium. "Good afternoon, I am Alan Barnes, President of the American Magic School System. On behalf of the students, faculty and staff we would like to take a moment to welcome family members and friends of our honored graduates today," He began. About five minutes later he was wrapping up the speech as I was fighting to stay awake. Mary nudged me in the ribs to wake me up. Alan is known for being long winded. "May your lives be filled with hard work, determination, and many wonderful surprises along the way? We congratulate you Class of 2008."

He called each graduate individually. The first group was the high school graduates then the college graduates. When he shook their hands as they received their diploma, a magic golden ribbon wrapped around the shaking hands.

"Dad what's the gold ribbon around their hands," I asked.

"It is a seal. You will see it with all magical ceremonies," he told me. When Michael's name was called we stood up and clapped for him along with their friends. I noticed Jenny and Katie on the other side of the auditorium cheering for them as well. He looked over at us smiled and waved at us after he waived to his family.

Mary looked over at me. "Yah right he's not into you. If that wasn't a giveaway then I don't know what is," she whispered. I mouthed the words "Shut up," Her eyes widened and gave me look like she just figured something out.

"What's going on there you two," Dad asked.

"Nothing, just girl talk," Mary said.

"Don't lie to me young lady." Dad looked sternly at me. "If it's about boys I want to know who it is you're talking about."

Mom jumped in and saved the day. "Sweetheart, girl talk can be anything from boys, to clothes, or even menstrual cycles."

"Alright, alright that's too much information. I'm sorry I asked." he backed down right away. Did I mention that I love my mom?

When all twenty five graduates were done getting their diplomas they followed the tradition of throwing the graduation caps in the air. When they reached the air golden birds flew around the caps. After the festivities were finally over with we flew back home. Mary was lucky enough not to have to deal with flying. There was an entrance point for visitors using The Mirror Network.

Thursday, August 7th.

I told you I would forget to write in this thing. Where was I? I got my driver's license last month and I passed the first time. Ricky wasn't happy with me passing the first try. It took him three times to finally get his license. I did mention to Mom and Dad that I wanted my own car. I even told them I wanted the Ford Fusion Hybrid. I thought with choosing something that was not flashy or a gas guzzler it would help. No such luck.

Independence Day we spent here at home shooting off fireworks and had a small cook out. Jenny and her family spent that week in Shreveport with her grandparents. It was the most boring summer holiday I can remember having.

Between Jenny and I working at the Alabaster Pot part time and us going on a vacation to Aunt Vickie's, the summer flew by. Alan came over with a letter for Ricky during breakfast today. It looked important and I could tell he was trying his hardest to not give in and wait for Ricky to open it. "I'm sorry to come over at such an early time of day. I just got this and I thought I would deliver it personally. Here you go," he said handing him a letter. It was from the Olympic Academy. His hands shook as he opened it. He read it and sat down with a blank expression on his face.

Dad ran over to him to see what was going on. "Son, are you alright?"

"Yah I'm fine, I can't believe I got it. I will be teaching high school chemistry at The Academy." I didn't think we could be happier for him. Dad looked like he wanted to jump through the roof he was so excited.

"As your official boss, I am pleased to welcome you aboard. You made a big impression with Mr. Swain while you were student teaching. Just between us he's the one that recommended you for the position," Alan said shaking his hand. "You will need to be at The Academy in two weeks for new teacher orientation and some training. I will get you some of the materials you will need to start planning curriculum. As your friend I must say good job, congratulations."

"Hey Alan, How are we going to get to school and how and when do we get our books, uniforms, and wands," I asked.

"It's a tradition for the seniors to ride together in a bus. Your books and uniforms will be waiting in your room for you. As for your wands, there is a strict process set forth by the USDM. I think your dad is in charge of new wand registration this year. There are certain laws we need to follow and you will learn more about it once you get to school. I need to be going and I have a meeting today. I of all people must not be late," he said as he left.

Jen and I worked this afternoon and it was our last days for the summer. Kelly asked us if we wanted to stay on as active employees so we can work during vacations from school. None of our parents had any issues with it. I wasn't sure if I really did want to work when I was on vacation. But working at The Alabaster Pot was fun. We were able to get the latest clothes a week before they were on the shelves. We were encouraged to wear the clothes we sold as a part of promoting the store. I think this was the coolest job someone my age can have.

Sunday, August 30th.

Tomorrow we were scheduled to leave for school. We went to the local department store for personal care things. Mom and Katie went with us and had their list of everything they thought we needed including a separate list of what was not allowed. "Mom what's the big deal this list. It's not like I'm going to be bringing illegal drugs or weapons to school. I'm not into those things."

"I know," she said in a quiet voice. "Some brands have an anti-magic spell placed on them. They're owned by companies that don't like their products being used with magic. It's silly really, but to avoid any issues we need to check the brands and make sure they are not on the list. Even a simple retrieval spell can make the items explode."

"Well I don't want to have a bottle of shampoo exploding on me," I said with a giggle. "Laugh now," Mom said, "Just you watch. At least one girl will have something blow up within the first week. Just ask your grandma or Alan. It happens every year." I know this is kind of cruel but I'm looking forward to seeing a bottle of shampoo burst on someone.

Monday, September 1st.

I woke up this morning excited to go North Central. I was the first up. While I waited for my parents to come into the kitchen, I made myself a cup of blueberry tea and sat impatiently at the table. To pass the time, I picked up my beaten up copy of the third "The Traveling Diary" book. I got so into reading, the next thing I knew Mom and Dad were in the kitchen discussing today's plans.

"Are you ready to go Princess," Dad Asked.

"Yah I am ready." I hopped off of my chair and noticed Mom tearing up.

"Ricky's teaching and now Sarah's going away to school. They're growing up so fast." Dad went over to Mom and wiped the tears from her cheeks. He held her face in his hands and looked at her sweetly.

"Lovey we knew this day would come," he assured her. He put his arms around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. I normally would be grossed out but this is something I wish someone would do with me. I thought about Michael again and I had to redirect my thoughts quickly. I didn't want to fantasize about him in that way. Anytime I daydream about something it never happens.

"Let's go. We have an hour and a half to get to the bus station in Crescent," Mom said while she was wiping her tears.

Both families piled into our minivan to car pool. Michael left for the Academy last night. He was a dorm leader and they needed him there the night before to prepare for the other college freshmen. The cool fall air made its presence known. It was a different morning than we seen lately. There was a lot of fog to drive through. The drive that would normally seem short was long and slow. Mom kept reminding me of how I can call her anytime I need to talk. I love my parents and all but in a way I will be on my own and I can't wait.

The meeting point was at an old farm. The old century old house was white with blue trim and had at least two stories. The corn was at least eight feet high and had started to turn brown in time for harvest season. Looking at one of the matching barns I noticed that there were only two coach buses. One of them had a handful of girls in it and the other had boys on it. We got out of the van while our dad's got our luggage from the back.

"Do you think they are going to be alright," Jenny asked. I looked over at both sets of parents..

"They might cry now, but I'm sure they will be celebrating sometime later," I said.

"Alright now, boys load up onto the bus on your right and girls into the one on the left." I heard a higher pitched nasal voice from a short woman in her forty's, her choppy short blonde hair bounced as she jumped lightly as if she was a giggly cheer leader. She was wearing the same gold tree necklace mom had on. We hugged our parents and joined the lady with the other girls. Standing next to her was another woman who was very pretty. She had light brown skin and nearly black eyes. Her complexion was perfect and she had the coolest organized-chaotic hair I've ever seen.

"Welcome, welcome girls. My name is Terri Ethridge and this is Mrs. Taylor. I will be your counselor this year. I looked at my mom and waived as Jenny did the same. "Okay, Ladies we have a schedule to follow," She announced.

As Jenny and I got to the bus, we gave our new counselor our names. She checked them off on her list. "Miss Miller and Miss. Barnes it's good to meet you. Just have as seat where ever you like. When we sat down in our red and blue plush seats, we could see our parents outside our windows waiving at us.

Mrs. Taylor stood up and greeted us after we were all seated. "Hello ladies. I am Lisa Taylor and I will be your English instructor this year and I am also the event coordinator here at the school. You will see me outside of the classroom a little more than other instructors and I fill in for Mrs. Ethridge when she needs it. So on behalf of Mrs. Ethridge and myself, Welcome to North Central." She sat down in the driver's seat of the bus and started the engine.

Mrs. Ethridge stood up in the front of the bus and counted all of us before setting down her clip board. "Now that we have everyone, let's go," she said to Mrs. Taylor.

Once the bus took off our new counselor became more excited than a cheerleader at a homecoming football game. "Now ladies in front of your seats there is a small screen. If you would please pay attention as Mrs. McGill our Dean she has a few things to say to you."

After about ten minutes of my grandmother welcoming us to the school and orientation complete with rules, I looked out the window noticing the sunlight had burned off the fog. When the video was finally over I sat back in my seat and relaxed ready for a long trip.

"Now for our grand entrance," Mrs. Ethridge announced. "_QUICK TRAVEL__, DESTINATION GIMBLE, SOUTH DAOKTA, MAY THE UNSEEN BE SEEN," _she said as she waived her wand. There was a bright golden flash of light outside of the bus. Everything was a quick blur for a moment. The next thing I knew we were in the outskirts of the Bad Lands of South Dakota. I think I'm going to love magic.

Everyone sat up and looked around like kids arriving at an amusement park as we entered a city. The people were walking quickly on the sidewalks into the shops. It was nothing like I expected at all; there were no oddly dressed people. No witch hats, long cloaks or broomsticks. The people here looked like everyday people we would see back home. The fashions seemed to be as up to date as the rest of the world. I kind of laughed when I saw a girl wearing the same shirt that I was.

The buildings were standard sized to a main city. Mainstream fashion stores, coffee shops, and book stores reminded me of the shopping centers back in Omaha. I was impressed that Gimble was this big and was hidden from plain view from the highway. The one building that caught my attention could only be a city hall. The aged brick building entry was full of people going in and out dressed in business attire. The golden dome topping the building was adorned with a concrete statue of a beautiful girl holding her wand up. I wondered if this building was where Dad's office was.

"Ladies I would like to welcome you to Gimble, South Dakota. It is the magic capital of the United States. Now before we arrive I would like you to know a bit about Gimble. It was founded in 1702 by Rufus Gimble who was tired of the witch hunting on the east coast. He and several other witch families wanted to start a place of their own and South Dakota seemed to be a perfect place.

Now we have four brother and sister schools. The Olympic Magic Academy for boys is in Washington State, the Conejo Valley Magic Academy from the Los Angeles area, The Hudson School of Magic in upstate New York, and the Creole School of Magic in New Orleans, as well as other schools across the world. You will get to meet the students from the other American schools throughout the year.

Oh silly me I almost forgot. I'm so excited about it because this year we are host to the Valentine's Day dance. The other schools will be joining us for the big event. Now ladies we will be arriving shortly and the older girls will be waiting for you to welcome you to the school."

North Central was tall, white, and covered with glass windows. I could briefly see the atrium on the east side of the building as the bus pulled into a garage inside the building. We were welcomed by a lot and I mean a lot of girls who were holding up signs and chanting "Welcome Seniors." As we got up to get off of the bus Mrs. Ethridge got up and stopped us from leaving the bus.

"Now ladies, we will let you off. But it is a tradition that we announce you to the rest of the girls. Wait just one moment as I get my list of names." She hurried over to her seat and grabbed the clipboard she checked our names off of earlier as Mrs. Taylor to get off of the bus.

"You of all people know I don't like having people staring at me," Jenny said.

"We will get through this," I assured her.

As I announce your name please stand by Mrs. Taylor as you exit the bus. Amalie Armstrong." A short girl with waist long brown hair and brown eyes walked to the door. She was clearly as nervous as I was. The older girls went wild as Amalie waived shyly to the crowd and stood next to the bus. There was a girl holding up a sign that said, "Welcome Amalie."

"Jennifer Barnes," Jen nervously walked out and waived like Amalie did. She ran to stand in the front of the bus. I could tell from previous experience she was probably nauseous from the limelight. When she would have a bad anxiety back in speech class she would get shaky or sick to her stomach. Another girl held a similar sign welcoming Jenny. I could only assume there was one for each of us.

"Ryndee Bolten," the crowd cheered again as she went to stand in her place.

"Heidi Costello," the list of the girls and welcoming signs went on.

"Cameron Davis,"

"Norah Franklin,"

"Samantha Frost,"

"Caitlyn Hill,"

"Excuse me important people coming through," she said as she shoved me out of her way. Caitlyn was acting like she was a rock star being introduced to her audience. She waved and smiled flicking her shoulder length blonde hair.

"That's enough Miss Hill" Mrs. Taylor said cutting her off. "Great. That's all I need is anotherBethany," I thought to myself.

"Corrigan Kendrick,"

"Ella Lawrence,"

"Sophie Martian,"

"Sarah Miller." It was my turn now. My stomach flipped as if I were going to be sick. The crowd seemed to be never ending.

"Nice clothes, where did you get them, the clearance rack," Caitlyn said in a surly tone.

"Miss Hill, I will ask you to give these girls the same courtesy they gave you. One more remark and it will be detention for you," Mrs. Taylor scolded her.

"Violet Nottingham,"

"Ruby Rogers,"

"Brooklyn Stuart,"

"Peyton Underhill,"

"Bianca Voorhees,"

A girl in similar clothes and hair style to Caitlyn waived to the audience. Caitlyn grabbed her by the arm and whispered something to Bianca as if she was scolding her. Bianca must be her minion.

"Kara West,"

"Jessica Williams,"

"And Sage Willowtree," We looked around and didn't see her.

"Do I have to do this?" I looked down at Mrs. Etherege's leg and I heard a light tiny voice ask.

"Yes Sage the introduction is a time honored tradition," she said to a tiny girl. It was hard to believe what I was seeing. I've never seen any mythical beings before this. Did I mention I love this magic stuff? Anyways Sage was about half the size of a fashion doll. Her beautiful long white hair had silver metallic streaks in it matching wings. The poor thing, she looked terrified.

"Oh look we got a baby with us," Caitlyn commented while giggling. Once she flew out of the bus, we could see a few more girls that looked like her fly above the crowd. Mrs. Ethridge gave Caitlyn a look of disapproval.

"Ladies here is your senior high school class, all twenty girls," Mrs. Ethridge announced. We heard all of the girls cheering as if we had won a beauty contest. After the humiliating announcement we were asked to follow Mrs. Ethridge and Mrs. Taylor into building. When we got inside we were greeted by my grandmother. This was going to be fun. "Welcome ladies, now that the traditional announcement is over with. I will be taking you along with Mrs. Ethridge to your dorm. Once you have settled in to your rooms Mrs. Ethridge will be taking you to lunch followed by a tour of the building."

When we walked through the first set of doors we were welcomed by the atrium. It was filled with flowers, bushes and a pond with large goldfish in it. The most beautiful plant there was a single oak tree in the middle of the atrium. Now I'm not a nature lover but there was something about this atrium I really liked.

We were directed to go to the fourth floor where our dorms were. The commons room had desktop computers, couches, and a fireplace. There were elegant paintings on the walls and a large flat screen television with a large selection of DVD's. We were told what rooms were ours and Jenny and I were relieved to find out we were both assigned to room two.

Mrs. Ethridge ran around making sure that everyone got into their rooms and we quickly learned that Caitlyn was not used to sharing. "I will not share my room with anyone. We heard her yell. She sounded like a five year old throwing a temper tantrum and I tried my hardest not to laugh.

Mrs. Ethridge set her foot down right away. "Miss. Hill, there are only ten rooms and two girls to each room. I'm sorry but there are no exceptions," she was told.

"Fine, I'll share my room with that _thing_, but if you expect me to share anything else, it won't happen!" She turned around and slammed her door closed. If I did that back home I would be grounded for a week.

"Very well and I must add for everyone to hear that prejudice against any person or being will not be tolerated here. The magic world is full of different kinds of species. It's just something we will all have to get used to. Remember girls zero tolerance!"

"Here, here," I said as I walked into my new room. There were two single sized beds with two desks, two dressers, two closets and a bathroom for us to share. The rooms are big and I couldn't understand why someone would want to be so selfish and demand their own room.

Our uniforms, a laptop computer, and an MP3 player were waiting on in our room for us. The uniforms jackets were burgundy with a patch that had a golden tree on in. A white button down shirt with a burgundy skirt and the best part is no ties. I can't stand wearing them. "Dad said we would be getting our books when we got our uniforms. I wonder if we have to wait until we get to class to get the books," Jenny asked.

"Knock, knock ladies, May I come in? Mrs. Ethridge said as she peeked through the door. "I'm making rounds to see if everyone got everything."

"We got everything except our books," I said.

"Oh I forgot were going paperless this year. Your books are downloaded onto the MP3 players and onto your laptops. There is also just about every song available to you and if you can't find it just ask Mrs. Taylor. She fills in for me when I'm teaching classes so you will see her periodically."

"Cool," Jenny and I said together.

"Mrs. Ethridge I heard Caitlyn earlier. Will Sage be alright," I asked.

"Oh heavens yes she should be fine Sarah. We get at least one girl every year that doesn't like to share rooms, they should be all right. Oh and ladies lunch will be served at noon so meet everyone out in the common area and we will all go down together," Mrs. Ethridge said as she left the room.

"I bet you five bucks Caitlyn will be the one with the exploding items this year. I don't see what the harm in having someone as small as Sage share a room. There is so much room in these dorms and I think if we wanted to she could be in our room and we wouldn't notice she was here," Jenny ranted.

"I'm not taking that bet. You are probably right. I don't think it's a matter of if it happens, it's a matter of when," I said as I started to unpack my things.

I got finished putting in just the right place just before it was time for lunch. "Ready when you are," Jenny said. As she opened the door I saw most of the other girls in the common room waiting to go. We all followed Mrs. Ethridge down stairs to the third floor. A few of the older students were there eating already. There was no kitchen just some microwaves and refrigerators. I wondered how we were going to get out food.

"Alright ladies for those of you who don't know what these are; let me introduce you to the food processors. I will show you how they work then you can get your own food." She walked over to one of the microwaves. "You simply press the green button and speak clearly into the microphone what you want. For example, Zorbas Gyro, one serving please?" As soon as she said it, there was a gyro in the processor. "Thank you," she said back to it. It smelled so good it was making me hungrier than I already was. "Now ladies it is that simple, if two of you want to share a pizza or something, you tell it how many servings you would like.

If there is something you want and it doesn't appear; chances are the brand is an anti-magic brand. Also, do you remember your mothers asking what the magic word was? Here it literally is the magic word. You must say please and thank you. Food processors are picky and will remember the next time you order something. Good manners are essential to getting what you like." She turned around and placed her plate on a nearby table. She came back and observed us as we got our food.

We were nearly last in line to get our food. Jenny and I wanted to try sharing a pizza from our favorite pizza place in Omaha. "I will get the pizza and you get the drinks," I suggested to Jenny.

"Okay," she agreed. I walked up to the food processor and pressed the green button.

Without asking Jenny I knew exactly what to order. "Papa Louie's pizza-ham and pineapple, with original crust. Two servings please?" A small pizza appeared in the processor. I could see the bubbling cheese and the steam rising from it. I grabbed it carefully and remembered my manners. "Thank you," I said to it. I was amazed how the processor could duplicate something so accurately. If I didn't know better I would have thought this was from Louie made it himself.

We sat down near the end of the table and soon we were joined by three girls. They didn't eat anything; they just drank from foam cups with lids and straws.

"Hi I'm Sarah Miller, and this is Jenny Barnes" I said to them.

"Hi, I'm Sydney Black," the dark brown haired girl said while sitting down. "And these are my cousins Corrigan Kendrick and Ryndee Bolten. She pointed to the blonde girls sitting next to her. "I am a college junior in the accelerated degree program.

I recognized them from the humiliating introduction. "So Where are you two from," She asked. Her voice was a very sweet tone with a normal pitch to it. She had one of those personalities that make her seem like everyone wants to be her friend.

"We are from Bellevue, Nebraska, it's just south of Omaha. Where are you from," I answered her automatically.

"Kansas City it's nice to meet you. Hey do you know someone named Ricky Miller?" Sydney asked me looking at my eyes. I could tell she was one of those people that were big on eye contact. I couldn't help but notice she had a cool eye color when she looked at me. It was a pretty greenish-blue color.

"Yes, he is my brother sorry if know him?"

Sydney laughed at my pathetic jibe. "Good one, I met him at the dance last year in New Orleans. One of his friends is dating a good friend of mine and I spent a lot of time with them." My heart sank. Michael was dating someone. At least I didn't get my hopes up too much.

Jenny sat up. She was interested in the conversation now. She was the one between us who had to know everything. "Oh I didn't know my brother was dating? Thanks for the ammunition to give him a hard time next time I see him."

"Who's you brother," Sydney asked.

"Mike Barnes, one of Ricky's friends. The one you said was dating."

"It's not him. Ricky tells me there is a girl he's liked for a long time but hasn't asked her out yet. He can't get it out of Michael who it is. He was the only one in their group of Ricky's friends without a date. He must be pretty determined to go out with this girl. Whoever she is, she is a very lucky girl. A lot of the other girls from here were nearly throwing themselves at him at the dance last year. But from what Ricky tells me he is holding out for her. Anyways Zach Edwards is the one dating my friend Ashley Monroe."

"My brother wants to ask someone out. I will have to find out who it is." I didn't know why but I was relieved and yet I wanted to know who it was. That's when reality hit and I had to remind myself he was only a friend and his personal life was none of my business.

"So did you two just find out your witches this year," Jenny asked Ryndee.

"No we've known for all our lives. The protection act doesn't apply to us. We are different. Can I trust you with something," Ryndee continued in a hushed tone. "I saw how you reacted to Caitlyn and how she treated Sage and it's an insult."

"Sure," I said. Jenny nodded her head as she was chewing a bite of her pizza.

"Were vampires, now you don't need to worry about us turning you into one of us? As long as we have a food processor we will be fine," she said with a teasing smile. I just have to remember to be specific, I don't like negative blood, it's got a metallic flavor," Corrigan said with a chuckle.

"Well you don't have to worry about anything. I'm happy you two don't look like the vampires they talk about in most stories. You look like normal people. I would never have known unless you said something," I said.

"OMG, are you serious? Is that blood in your cups," Jen asked Sydney with a grossed out expression. I wonder if she is going to get sick being that close to blood. I always give her a hard time because she won't watch gory movies with me.

"Yah, well we don't need to eat as often as humans do. I can go for a few days without eating and I will be fine." Ryndee answered while playing with a few strands of her long blonde hair.

"Sydney may I ask you something, just to understand you better," I said. "Tell me how much of the stereotype is either true or false?"

"Sure well the coffins, moats, dungeons, crucifixes and holy water, are all myths. We are just like you but the insides of our bodies are built a little differently it requires us to have a different diet. There was one vampire in France that lived like that and from then on we were stuck with this stereotype. Sunlight and Garlic won't kill us either we are just as mortal as humans are. We have a similar life expectancy as humans and we have normal skin like you do. There are no enhanced abilities or super powers other than what magic humans have. It's like you said we look like most people. We don't even have the sharp teeth they have in the movies.

I'm only a second generation from Dad's side and Mom's family has a long history. Ryndee and Corrigan are from my mother's side of the family. My dad was bitten by a vampire child in the first grade. Back then the vaccinations were not required.

When we go through the immunizations when we are born we are given one that eliminates the toxin in our saliva. It also reduces the urge to hunt and kill people. That's why we don't have the sharp fanged teeth. It eliminates them from even growing in. The only difference in our bodies is our stomachs and digestive systems are smaller we have bigger lungs. We can hold our breath longer and that makes swimming a lot of fun. We can stay under water for hours at a time."

"Ladies it's time to get our tour of the building," Mrs. Ethridge sang. "So let's finish up and meet me at the door." We cleaned up our trays and met Mrs. Ethridge by the door. "Now we will be splitting up into two groups. Mrs. McGill will be giving half of you, your tour and I will be giving the other half their tour. Are we ready?"

We were split up into the tour groups. I was lucky enough to be in my grandmother…I meant Mrs. McGill's group. Jenny was with us along with Sage, Corrigan, Ryndee, Amalie and more girls I didn't have their names memorized yet.

Our group started on the top floor. It was the college level dorm floor. The next one down was our floor. The second and third floors were the classrooms. When we got to the first floor we were shown the administration offices, the nurse's office, and the trophy room. The trophy room was filled with awards that were current and there was some that dated back to the beginning of the school.

"Now ladies I would like to show you the most important thing here in this room. This was the necklace of Elizabeth Elwes. She was the founder of this school. Now it's important because this charm holds a special protection spell for not only the school but the town as well. It's why the mundane can't see us here. Now you will see a lot of women wearing a charm just like this one. It's awarded on the day of high school graduation. Do you ladies have any questions…No? Okay moving on."

When we were done with the tour of the classrooms we were directed to go to the auditorium for our wand issuance. When we arrived we sat together and I completely forgot Alan mentioning Dad was the one issuing the wands. "This is going to be fun," I whispered to Jen as I sank in my chair.

"Good afternoon ladies; my name is Richard Miller I am the Assistant Director for the MFBI and I will be assigning you your wands today. The MFBI is the branch of the United States Government that is responsible for the issuance, and tracking of each and every wand.

Just to remind you in the every area of the school is monitored with the exception of the bedrooms, bathrooms, locker rooms and on occasion Mrs. McGill's office. This is done more for your protection than anything else.

The most important thing about wand safety is never leave your wand alone. Hand spells are possible and they are much harder to trace than a spell cast with a wand. Sometimes when a wand is stolen is used to commit magic crimes. Believe me the last thing you want is to be involved in an investigation of misusage of magic.

If you wand is ever broken, lost or stolen let us know right away so not only to get a replacement, but we can document that the wand is unaccounted for. Right now Dr. Montgomery and his team are working on disabling missing wands."

After a twenty minute speech of how the MFBI was formed and why it was needed in the magic world, the wand issuance started. Everyone was called alphabetically except for me. When the other girls got their wands they were told they could go to their rooms.

Time seemed to drag on, until he finally announced my name. I was the last one called. When I got to the desk he was sitting at, there was a laptop computer hooked up to two different boxes. One of them had a hand shaped cut out and the other was a rectangular box with a clear top on it.

Dad didn't ask me the same questions he asked the other girls like their names, address, date of birth, or social security numbers. He just told me to put my hand on the box with the hand shape. The box gave a blue glow for a moment scanning my right hand. Then on the other box a magic wand appeared.

"Well then here you go princess, your very own wand," Dad said as I picked up the wand with a scolding look for calling me that here. The maple wand fit in perfectly in my hand and I noticed my name was embossed in it in elegant gold lettering.

"Don't forget what I told you all earlier. Never and I mean never leave your wand alone."

"Thanks," I said as I hugged him. "Well I better get back to my room. Jen will probably be wondering where I am at."

I darted out of the auditorium as fast as I could. My quick pace was abruptly stopped by an unexpected visitor. "It must be nice being the Assistant Director's daughter. You probably get away with anything you want to," Caitlyn said as she and Bianca waited for me. "I wouldn't be surprised if you cheated your way through all of your classes. Besides you must be having fun getting to know those, things, those vampires," she said with a disgusted tone. I had enough of her comments and I had to say something.

"I don't know what your problem is. Since we got here you been nothing but rude to everyone here. Just to let you know I don't get away with anything with my dad. He's a pretty strict father. How did you know he is my Dad? I know I didn't tell you because it's none of your business. Now if you don't mind I need to get back to my room" I said to her as I turned to walk away from her.

"Like I would tell _you_, I have my way of finding things out," she said in a snobbish tone.

"Is everything alright here ladies," Mrs. Ethridge asked me.

"Everything's is fine here," Caitlyn said as they walked away.

"I don't believe her," I said quietly to Mrs. Ethridge. "She comes here acting as if the world is her doormat and walks all over us. Leaving us stuck listing to her nasty comments."

"Don't worry about a thing. She will have a nice talking to by Mrs. McGill. I heard every word she said and her comments about the vampires will not be tolerated. Just go on to your room."

"Is everything alright? I couldn't help but overhear you two. Sounds like you are pretty upset there Sarah," Dad asked.

"Yes it's fine. It's only the first day and someone is already treating others like they shouldn't be here. It's not right."

"Well just remember what your mother and I taught you about other people; no matter what they look like all people are the same. That also goes for magical creatures. They have every right to be here just as you do. Don't forget if you need someone to talk to just give us a call."

"Thanks, I need to be getting back to my room. See you later." I said as I turned around to go up the stairs.

When I got back to my room, the signs that were held up for Jenny and I were on our door. I looked around the dorm and all of the doors had the welcome signs on them indicating who had what rooms.

I opened the door to discover I had another roommate. Jen looked at me like she was in trouble. "Hey Sara, Sage needed another room to stay in because she couldn't take Caitlyn's complaining anymore. I didn't think you would mind and Caitlyn locked her out of the room. Mrs. Ethridge said it should be fine for now." She kept talking really fast. She did this whenever she got nervous.

"Jen, Jen," I said and still she kept talking. "JENNY!" I had to nearly yell to get her attention. When she stopped rambling I finally got her attention. "It's alright, she can stay there's plenty of space. Geez you are just as long winded as your dad is."

She sighed and looked relieved. "Good because I didn't know what you would say and I didn't want poor Sage to go through another rejection. The only problem is all of her stuff is too big, it's human size not pixie size."

"Knock, knock ladies, its Mrs. Ethridge, I hope everything alright in here. Sorry about this Sarah. Looks like Sage will be here for now to keep things peaceful. Thank you for taking her in. It will only be for a few days while I get room assignments taken care of. I'll bring the bed over later."

"Oh it's no problem at all, there is only one thing, all of Sages stuff is too big, it's our size not hers. Do we have special books and uniforms for her," Jenny asked.

"Oh dear I forgot all about that. Let me fix that." Mrs. Ethridge pulled out her dark wooden wand and cast a spell. "_PERFECT SIZE FOR SAGE APPLEBLOSSOM WILLOW TREE,_" A golden glow similar to mine flowed out of her wand shrinking all of Sage's things to her size. "I hope that takes care of everything, if you need anything I am in room one."

"Thank you," Sage said. Her pretty voice reminded me of wind chimes.

The three of us spent the afternoon arranging our room and getting to know each other. We talked about where we were from. Sage was from Colorado and her family lived in the forested areas. A lot of our technology was new for her. Jenny and I decided to help her adjust to the electronic age and gave her a brief lesson.

At dinner Sage, Sydney, Corrigan, Ryndee, Cameron and Amalie sat with us. It was nice to feel as if friends wouldn't be a problem here. We learned Cameron was one of nineteen children and she was from Oregon. Amalie was an only child that came from Ohio and just turned sixteen yesterday.

This evening Mrs. Ethridge announced that we could watch a movie in the common room area. After plenty of arguing, most of the girls agreed on a romance movie. At eight o'clock. Mrs. Ethridge announced it was room curfew and lights out was at nine. The three of us went to our room and changed for bed. Sage's tiny bed and furniture was on a table across the room from our beds. It looked like furniture I had from my doll house when I was little.

"Knock, knock again ladies. May I come in?" Mrs. Ethridge came in the door. "May I talk to you three for a moment?"

"Okay," we all said. "First I want to say Sage I am so sorry that you were treated this way. This doesn't happen very often and we've had a long discussion with Caitlyn about her behavior. Second we have decided to move you in with Amalie. Amalie's roommate Bianca will be moving in with Caitlyn. So tomorrow you will be in Amalie's room alright dear? I know this shuffling around is irritating, but I'm sure this will work out better."

We heard a loud bang. Everyone including us ran out of their rooms trying to find out what happened. "Excuse me ladies I need to see what is going on. Have a good night." All three of us went to the door to see what was going on.

"Looks like someone didn't follow the shopping list," Ryndee said as all of us looked at Caitlyn. There she was standing at the door covered in purple lotion from head to toe. Mrs. Ethridge ran to help her.

"Ladies go back to your rooms. Now Caitlyn let's get you cleaned up and I will check your items to make sure the rest is authorized."

"Can we say karma?" Corrigan commented with a giggle as she turned around to her room.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Well that explains a lot.

Tuesday, September 2nd

"Good morning," we heard Mrs. McGill over the loud speaker. I was annoyed at being woken up by the announcement. She's way too chipper in the morning. "Ladies just a reminder, breakfast is served at seven and classes start at eight. Have a wonderful first day of the new year." Jenny took her shower first, I rolled back over and went back to sleep until she was done.

After we got dressed we went downstairs for breakfast. The cafeteria was filled with girls from all of the college levels. Everything was new for us: new school, new teachers, and paperless books. I was happy there were no heavy book bags to carry around. We didn't even have paper and pens to carry around. This would make taking notes difficult.

Jen, and the other girls that were in my group during the tour had the same classes together. The rooms were simple enough to follow since they were in order of the schedule. Our first one was my worst subject, math. I thought my brother got all of the math skills between us. We were greeted by a young teacher with ear length curly red hair and freckles.

"Good morning ladies. My name is Mr. Greenburg and I will be your math instructor. We will be starting on a short quiz to find out where you're at. This is a self paced course. It is designed to take you from where you are now to at least the algebra level. Once you surpass the algebra level you will continue to work to the geometry level. If throughout the year you need some help, please come and see me so I can arrange a tutor for you.

If you would each find a seat and log into your laptops we can get started. To log in, your user name is your last name and the password is the last four digits of your social security number. For simplicity these will not be changed. If you do need to change them for security reasons, please see Mr. Blair in the computer lab upstairs.

There will be no internet surfing because the Wi-Fi internet has been disabled in the classrooms. You can attach your MP3 players to the USB port with the cables provided. There is also a pad with a writing unit attached to the computer so you will not need to use a pen and paper for your notes. However, if you are good at typing it may be faster than handwriting your notes."

After twenty long excruciating minuets of math questions I was finally done. There was another ten minutes left of the class hour. "When you are done with your quiz, feel free to look around your MP3 player for a book to read or listen to some music for the rest of the hour." I looked in the MP3 player to see what was available. Mrs. Ethridge was right - there was every song imaginable. I would have to get a play list going. But Mr. Greenburg did say there were books on here too. I had to see if my favorite books were there and to my surprise they were. All of the greats were there: Austen, Shakespeare, Stephenie Meyer, J.K. Rowling, and even Stephen King. After looking through the infinite library I did find all of "The Traveling Diary" books. I would have to wait for book five to be on there since it's not scheduled to be released for another two months.

The next class was one of my stronger subjects. I entered in the chemistry classroom where there was a small older man about four and a half feet tall. He had long gray hair with a matching goatee and a lab coat. "Welcome, welcome, my name is Dr. Carmine Zima and I will be your chemistry teacher. Each of you have been assigned a seat with a lab partner. Now if you will, when I point to your seat and please sit down."

I sat next to Ryndee. She had her hair in a ponytail and, like me, seemed to be more comfortable in sweat pants than a uniform. "Wow I wonder how old…I mean, young he is?" She whispered to me.

"I have no idea, looks pretty old, like he's been here for a while," I answered her.

"You've got the same warped sense of humor I do. I think we will get along just fine" she said with a light laugh. Dr. Zima started making his speech. His accent was slightly on the north eastern side. It reminded me of my Uncle Paul. "Now your partner will be your greatest asset in this class. For the sake of not only your grades, but your lab partner, please do not slack off. In this class we will be touching on the basics of chemistry as well as making potions. We will be making simple potions this year as well as the next two years of college if you choose to attend here. The difficulty level will increase as the year progresses.

Potions and chemistry go hand in hand. For example, it is a well known fact that you do not mix chlorine and ammonia. Does anyone know why?" A few seconds of silence passed. "No? Besides making a dangerous gas, it will also kill certain beings the moment it is inhaled. If you want to know what species I am referring to then read up on chapter eight of your books."

Our first assignment was to either memorize or re-memorize the periodic table of elements. They were still pretty fresh in my head from last year. The test on it Friday wouldn't be an issue.

"I just wish he would give us more time than a week. I never took this class in mundane school," Ryndee whined.

"I can help you study if you want. I'm pretty good at it," I offered.

"Good because chemistry has never been my best subject," she said with a relieved sigh.

Next it was off to English. Mrs. Taylor greeted us and displayed a syllabus on the front screen as we took our seats. "This will be a guideline for the course work we will be doing this year. I have already sent a copy to your school e-mail address. We will be writing, spelling, and working on poems. Assignments are due at the beginning of class. If you get it done early, you are welcome to email it to me. I believe the same goes for all of the other instructors here. For each day your assignment is late, ten percent will be deducted from the grade.

If you have gotten a chance to look at your MP3 players, we will be reading from the library available to us. Like a music play list, you will be given a list of authors to choose from to create your own reading list. This will be your first assignment and it will be due tomorrow."

When I checked my e-mail for the approved reading list, a message popped up from my grandmother. "Dear Sarah, I will be meeting with each girl from the senior class for four o'clock tea in my office this week. Our meeting will be today. Feel free to ask any questions you may have. Mrs. McGill A.K.A. Grandma," After I read the e-mail I deleted it. I loved my grandma but I had a feeling her being the dean of my school was going to get old really fast. I wondered if this is how Jenny and Mike felt with Alan being the president of the school system.

After English I had gym class. All twenty girls were there for this class. We had identical t-shirts and a choice between shorts or sweat pants to wear. We all filed into the gym and sat on the bleachers. "Hello everyone, my name is Mrs. Baxter and I will be your gym teacher. Don't worry - I'm not like your previous gym teachers. I won't come across as a drill instructor. I would like you to think of me as your personal trainer. Every day you will be expected to dress in uniform, run at least ten minutes around the gym or on the treadmills and participate in the various exercise techniques. We will be going through the typical sports such as basketball, baseball, soccer, and swimming. Now the good news is there will be no dodge ball. Due to the injuries that have occurred in the past it has been banned from The American Magic School System. However, we do have a similar game using foam balls. Believe me they hurt a lot less.

We will also be touching on some forms of dance. You will learn everything from classical ballet to square dancing. The good news is this will be the only year you are required to take gym class unless you major in kinesiology, criminal justice or any one that requires a higher level of physical fitness.

This year we will be competing with the other magic schools starting in January with our annual dueling tournament. If you decide to compete in the events we will train you. We will be teaming up with the boys' Olympic Academy. The Hudson, Creole and Conejo schools are all co-ed so that helps to level the playing field. This means if the boys win, we win. There will be both high school and college divisions as well as single and mixed teams. Due to the difficulty of the advanced spells for the pairs and mixed divisions, we only match up with the boys in the college level. We will have signups for the trials soon. Now is the time to start thinking if you want to compete. With that in mind, because today is the first day, we won't worry about working out. Relax and you can check out the gym equipment or chat amongst yourselves."

Next was a nice break from classes - lunch. I was relieved that I didn't have to think. I wasn't very hungry today but I made myself eat something so I wouldn't get sick. I was getting my lunch out of the processor when I heard Caitlyn yelling at one as if it would obey her.

"I said I want Alaskan smoked salmon, wild rice and vegetables from "The Gardens," in Wichita Kansas, PLEASE!" Nothing happened.

"Caitlyn, yesterday Mrs. Ethridge told us that some places don't allow us to use the food processors," I reminded her.

"Just mind your own business," she snapped back. I turned around and joined my friends at the table.

"Looks like Caitlyn will be in for a rude awakening. She can't always get what she wants," Cameron said as I sat down.

After lunch it was time for the next class, spells. I was looking forward to this one just like everyone else was. When we got to the classroom door I stopped in shock.

"No way," Jenny said "Check out who that is."

"Mr. Oliver," I asked.

"Yes Sarah it's me, Mr. Oliver. I'm not teaching history this year. I am teaching spells to all of you young ladies. So why don't you and Jenny sit down. I will go over what you will be learning this year." We listened to Mr. Oliver's speech on responsible wand usage and upkeep. The first spell we learned in class was the retrieval spells. It was easy for Jenny and me, but for others it was difficult.

"_RETRIEVE PENCIL,_" I said. A pencil disappeared from the pile on Mr. Oliver's table and popped on to our desks. Most of them had a Bronze beam with the exception of Corrigan and Ryndee whose were golden too. This was a fun and I could tell this was going to be a good class for me.

When spells was over, we went to history class. It was the last one for the day. We arrived at the class room and we saw a short, brown-haired plump woman. She looked familiar but I couldn't place it. "Good afternoon, my name is Mrs. Diana Ullman. I will be your history teacher this year. Now after we all find our seats I will give you a brief overview of what we will be covering this year." We all took our seats and started taking notes on the laptops.

"History covers many things: American, European, and World history. We will also be covering magic history in these regions as well. We will start off local here in Gimble; move on to state, U.S. government, followed by European then World. This week we will be covering Gimble and South Dakota. It's quite basic and once you have the local stuff down, the remaining majority will be similar. The only things that change are the names and dates. We will touch briefly on how our government is run and how it affects us here in the magic world.

Now I would like everyone to click on the book icon on your laptop and select history. We will begin well, at the beginning: Gimble, South Dakota.

After reading along with Mrs. Ullman we were finally done for the day. "Miss Barnes, may I have a word with you?" Jenny and I stopped at her desk. "I understand my son Conrad was a classmate of yours in Bellevue is that correct?"

"Yes but how did you know," she asked.

"He's been talking about you for a while now. He thinks you two belong together, but then again he wants to start dating. I on the other hand think he is too young to date. I hope this won't be a problem, will it?"

"No, I have been turning him down for a while. I'm not even sure if my parents would allow me to date," she said.

"Well good, I know that with the dance coming up in February he may ask you to be his date."

"What? Conrad wants to ask me to the dance? No, wait a minute where is he going to school?"

"Oh, he is at the Conejo School of Magic. Didn't he tell you?"

"No, having magic abilities isn't something you want the entire world to know about," Jenny answered. "If you want you can tell him to pick a girl he goes to school with and not to worry about asking me. I will be fine."

I was confused about how someone that lived so far away could work at this school. If my geography is correct it takes about twelve hours to drive here. The only other way I could think of Mrs. Ullman getting here was if she used the same spell we had done to get here. I had to ask her. "Mrs. Ullman if you live in Bellevue, then how do you get here? I know it must take a long time to drive here,"

"Oh I forgot how little you girls know your first year. We use mirrors. Like this one I have in the back of the room. It must be a full length mirror and you have to concentrate on where you want to go. Now there has to be another mirror where you are going unless you have the ability to use the traveling spell. All you need to do is concentrate, then you walk through the mirror. To protect the students, these mirrors only allow faculty to get to and from the school. It's the best way to commute. You don't need to worry about cars and rush hour."

"Whoa, that's so cool! So is that how we will be getting home for vacations," I asked her.

"Yes, but only through your counselors office."

"Thanks! I better go; today is my day for tea with Mrs. McGill." I walked out of the classroom thinking that I'm going to love this magic stuff.

I rushed to the office floor looking for the secretary. "I have tea with Mrs. McGill today," I said to the overdone-makeup, older, platinum-blonde secretary. Her eyes had so much mascara the lashes looked like spider legs.

"Oh yes Miss Miller, right this way." I followed her down the hall to an old office door. "Mrs. McGill, Miss Miller is here for her tea."

"Show her in Claire," Grandma said to her. "Welcome Sarah, please sit down. Don't feel awkward I meet with all of the senior girls the first few weeks of school. So tell me how's it's going for you?" She handed me a bone china tea cup filled with tea. This looked just like the set she uses when we're at her house.

"Umm, it's going alright I guess," I said as I sat down in a large comfortable chair. Hanging on the wall behind her desk was the school's symbol. It was carved out of wood and very large. "I'm not too bombarded with homework yet. It's only been one day and it was a typical first day of school."

"Good, good. I see Jenny and Sage are your roommates. Is that going alright?"

"Yes fantastic so far! But it has only been one night."

"Good point. So have you been getting along with your other classmates as well? I'm sure that you have discovered that there are several species besides human?"

"With the exception of Caitlyn, yes, I'm getting along with everyone. I know that obviously Sage is a pixie and then there's Corrigan and Ryndee and they're vampires right," I asked her.

"For this year that is it. We have seen all sorts of pixies, fairies, mermaids, and werewolves. That's just to name a few. But if they are too different than humans and they need different living accommodations they usually go to the Creole School. Now there are some things I will be meeting with you about throughout this year. So with that in mind, do you have any questions for me?"

"No.….well there is one thing. How long has Dr, Zima been teaching here?"

"He has been here for quite some time. I know he looks young but I assure you…"

"Young," I said trying not to choke on my sip of tea. "He looks as if he is as old as the school itself."

"Wait, he looks old to you?" She sat up in her chair with a shocked look.

"Well yes, isn't he?"

"Dr. Zima is well over four hundred years old. He has been with the school since the school opened. You can see him as an old man?"

"Well yah, of course isn't he? I mean I knew he was older but I had no idea he was that old."

"Yes, he is but most of the other students think he's around twelve years old. He accidentally and permanently made himself too young while working on a youth potion. He has been trying to make himself older. So far nothing's worked. That's one of the reasons why we installed the surveillance system once the technology came along.

Now be honest, how old do you think I am? Don't worry it doesn't offend me."

"Grandma you look like, well a grandma in your fifties or so."

She laughed as she sat back in her chair. "Why didn't I notice this before? It's obvious you have your father's talent for seeing the truth. No wonder your brother couldn't put anything passed you. I can't believe it, but you are a truth seer."

"A truth seer, so I can see the truth," I asked her shockingly.

"That's why I look like your grandmother and Dr. Zima looks so old to you. Listen dear, would you like to stay this way? I can place a spell on you to see what others see. It will only hold here on campus?"

"Sure I guess. But you said I get it from Dad. Is that why he is so good at his job?" "Yes, that's one of the reasons why he was encouraged get his degree in criminal justice. That way he could join the MFBI after he finished college."

"Well that explains why I always got caught when I tried to lie," I said with a chuckle.

"Look at the time, it's getting late. We need to wrap this up and I can place the spell on you now or at another time. It's getting close to dinner and I do believe you have homework tonight correct?"

"Yes I do, go ahead with that spell you were talking about."

When she pointed her wand to me, I closed my eyes tight. I heard her say _"HIDDEN MUST BE THE TRUTH THAT CAN BE SEEN."_ There was no flash or jolt just a warm feeling and brightness. "You can open your eyes now Sarah." I opened my eyes and my grandmother wasn't standing in front of me. It was a woman in her mid thirties. If I didn't know any better I would have thought it was my aunt. "Now how do I look to you?" I heard my grandmother's voice come from this younger woman.

"Like Aunt Vickie but a little bit different," I asked her with some hesitation.

"Wonderful! Now sorry to rush you dear but if you are too late the food processors won't let you eat. If you find yourself ever needing anything, don't hesitate to ask to see me alright?" "Okay," I said as I grabbed my back pack.

When I got back to my room after dinner, Sage was packing her things to move. "Sage would you like some help with moving," I asked her.

"That's sweet of you to offer, but I've got it all right here in my never ending back pack," she said patting a small bag.

"A never ending back pack? Is that what I think it is," I asked.

"It can hold anything you can put in it. Haven't you heard of it before?"

"No, but I now know what to tell my mom to get me for Christmas." She let me peak inside and I couldn't see her things in it. It was like looking into a bag total darkness.

"I need to get going now. Bye and thanks to both of you. Thanks for everything. Not everyone is as nice to us as you two are," she said in her tiny voice.

"Look, I just have to say this. I don't understand how you can be treated like you were. I actually think it's cool that I'm going to school with a pixie. Not many people think of mythical or magical species as a normal part of our world. I guess that's what happens being raised parents who insist everyone and every being is the same," I said.

"We're not so mythical are we?" she asked.

"No you're _not_ mythical. I'll see you later," I said as she headed out of the door. I meant what I said. I really liked having Sage as a friend.

After she left, Jenny and I started on our first day of homework. It wasn't too bad but I wondered if it was a light load because it was the first day of school

Wednesday, September 3rd

When I got to Chemistry, Dr. Zima looked a lot younger. His black hair was longer and perfectly styled and his personality reminded me of a pushy salesman. At least I know now that I have the truth abilities and Grandma's spell worked.

He decided to surprise us first thing this morning. "Ladies, how is the periodic table coming along? Let's find out. Pop quiz! On your screen there is a blank table of elements and below them are the names of the elements. Your job is to drag and drop them in the correct boxes. You have twenty minutes to finish this quiz. The first one to finish this with the highest score gets extra credit and you don't have to take the test on Friday. I suggest you try to get extra credit as much as you can. The assignments do get tougher as the year goes by. Ready and go."

Most of the girls were panicking like I usually do. Today I was calm for some reason. I remembered almost all of them but I wasn't sure if I mixed up two of them or not. With three minutes to spare I sent the quiz to Dr. Zima.

"Time's up ladies! Only four of you completed the quiz in time. Here in Chemistry, time is a necessity and brings us balance. You need patience to wait for things to finish and to ensure you have done everything correctly. Yet you need to be quick enough to make sure you don't ruin your projects. The key word here is balance.

Congratulations are in order for Miss Miller. She was the only one who got all of them correct. How extra credit works in this class is it will replace your lowest graded assignment at the end of the semester." I was _so_ glad I didn't have to take the quiz on Friday. I am the worst test taker in the world. I get nervous when I'm under pressure while taking a test.

In gym class our coach decided to see who would like to participate on the dueling team. "Alright if you would like to participate in this year's dueling team, today is the day to sign up. There are some of you who will try out and not make it. There will be a reserve team set up in the event a primary team member is unable to duel. If you do not make either the primary or reserve teams, we will expect you to accept it gracefully and support your schools dueling team members.

As with all team sports you will be expected to maintain a minimum of a B or 3.0 grade point average as well as excellent behavior. Some of the qualifications for the all-around award are having a high GPA and each instructor will be writing a review of your behavior both inside and outside of the classroom.

This year the tournament starts in January. Mr. Oliver and I will be heading up the practices and teams. When I call your name I would like you to see me to sign up for dueling." Each of us were called up in alphabetical order. "Miller," I heard Coach say loudly. I walked over and sat down on the hard wooden bleacher next to her.

"Over the past few days Mr. Oliver's noticed that you are very good with spells. How this works is we match up senior girls with a college level student for practice because of their experience. If you sign up for this, practice will be held daily after school starting after Thanksgiving. If you do well enough this year, and you continue here for college, you may be encouraged to try out for the mixed team with the Olympic students. We only match up mixed partners at the college level.

From what I have heard about your abilities and your grades from your previous school, I think you have a good chance of winning the all around trophy this year. With that in mind, would you like to sign up to try out for this year's team?"

"Yah, it sounds like fun," I told her.

"Good I will let you know when the tryouts are. In the meantime practice your spells. Even if you don't make the team the extra practice is always good."

"Thanks for the advice," I said as I went to sit back down with Jenny.

"So did you sign up," Jenny asked.

"Yes, did you?" I said.

"No. Coach said I will be up in front of hundreds of people. After speech class last year I can't tolerate being in front of large crowds." There was a moment of awkward silence. "When do you think practice will start," Jenny asked me.

"Coach said it would be after Thanksgiving," I replied. I forgot about being in front of hundreds of people. I'm not sure if I can handle that. I thought I got in way over my head.

Friday, September 5th

Today the dueling try outs were held after school. To test our abilities we were instructed to cast spells on each other. I thought it was going to be harder. There wasn't a lot of work involved. Mr. Oliver, Coach Baxter, and Mrs. Taylor were there watching us quietly as they took notes on their clipboards. Most of the spells were easy. I like using magic. Even if I don't make the team I thought it couldn't hurt to learn more.

After dinner I just wanted to be alone. I love Jenny like a sister but sometimes I need a break and be completely by myself. There was something about the atrium that drew me to it. It reminded me of being home in the backyard. When I got there I was not the only one who was there. I wanted a brain break and not think for a change. There was a large trunk I found to be comfortable to lean against from the big tree. I pulled my MP3 player out and started reading the latest romantic vampire book.

Before I knew it, it was dark outside and it was getting close to curfew. When I got up to go to my room I thought the atrium would be great to go back to when I needed some alone time.

Thursday, October 31st

The last few months of school seemed to progress like a turtle running. It was slow and took us some time to get used to everything. Because of how the classes were laid out for us, we had no excuse for being late. I managed to behave well enough to avoid detention unlike some other girls.

Halloween was a big deal. A few weeks ago the hallways and classrooms were covered in orange and black decorations. We were told to pick out our costumes so we knew what we wanted to dress up as. I decided to dress up as a fairy or pixie and Jenny wanted to dress up as a rock star. Sage was new to Halloween and in her world it wasn't celebrated. So she wasn't sure what she would dress as. Being that I was dressing as a fairy I joked with her about dressing up as a human. Mrs. Ethridge overheard our conversation.

"Ladies it is possible for her to be temporarily changed into a human. All I would need to do is cast a spell on her to human size her. It's a simple masquerading spell. Every year at least one non-human girl is temporarily changed into what looks like a typical teenage girl." Sage loved this idea and was set on being human; even if it was only for a few hours.

Today in History we got a lesson of why Halloween is so important to our world. 's lecture seemed more interesting today. At least Ella didn't fall asleep in class again. "Halloween is also known as Samhain Eve. The history behind Halloween was that October 31st was the day that all of the spirits from the other side were able to come over. Ordinary people were encouraged to wear a disguise to confuse the incoming spirits. Witches were suggested to wear the traditional witch costumes so the spirits could recognize them.

Now-a-days, it isn't celebrated in that way. Here at the school we have a big party for you girls. However, for those who have the abilities to do so, they are designated as the spirit greeters. Due to the unpredictable behavior of the spirits we highly discourage newer students from participating in the greeting ceremonies in Gimble Park. It all comes down to an issue of safety." She told us more about the spirits and how sometimes they can cause havoc or play pranks on the greeters. Before I knew it the bell rang. This was one lecture I didn't really want to end. "See you at the party tonight girls. By the way there is no homework for tonight. Have fun," she said as we were dismissed.

After dinner we were instructed to go to Mrs. Ethridge's office one at a time for our costumes. I was the first. "Hello Sarah, well what did you decide on for your costume," she asked excitedly.

"A pixie - I thought it would be fun to have the fake wings and everything."

"I have a wonderful surprise. You won't be wearing fake wings and glitter. I can turn you into an actual pixie if you want? That is unless you want the glitter and cloth wings."

"Really, this is so cool. I can be any species I want for Halloween," I asked excitedly.

"Absolutely, all you need to do is tell me and I can do it for you. Now the spell wears off at midnight."

"Go ahead and do it. It will be fun," I said to her. I stood there ready for a spell to be cast on me.

"Wonderful, now hold still." She pulled out her wand and recited the spell. "_Halloween fun we will see, a pixie you will be_."

The golden beam flowed through her wand and hit me like I was being tickled. Gold dust and butterflies flew around me lifting me from the ground. I shrunk down instantly to Sage's size. My hair had golden streaks in it. Out of my back a set of wings popped out. I was flying without any effort. My now pixie sized wand was in the pocket of my brown and orange leaf dress within easy reach. Everything in the room seemed a hundred times bigger. I was about six inches tall and things that were normally small to me were now big. I now understood what our world felt like to Sage. It would be nice if Caitlyn would be turned into either a pixie or vampire. This way she could experience what it's like to be a species other than human.

"Wow this is totally amazing." I giggled at the sound of my higher pitched voice.

"Now be careful where you are flying. Send in the next girl alright." I flew out of the room and the other girls were in as much shock as I was. Jenny came out dressed in a glamorous outfit complete with spiky high heels and a microphone. This was so Jen. Sage came out looking like a human. Her wings and metallic streaks were gone. Her voice was a deeper normal human voice.

At seven we headed down to the gym. Mrs. Taylor greeted us at the door dressed in a chef's coat, tall hat and checkered pants. Her name was embodied on the coat. "Welcome to your first North Central Halloween party. Every year there is a theme for the party. This year the college senior class has chosen a medieval theme. So have fun and the party is over at ten. Your spell will wear off no later than midnight."

The gym didn't look normal; it looked like a castle. The walls were brick covered in tapestries. Soldiers dressed in full armor were posted at different locations. It reminded me of touring Welsh castles last spring break. I marveled at the room while looking for friends in their costumes. Jenny and I went to one of the tables filled with candy and cakes. The band was playing some music Michael played once in a while. There were five of them on stage all wearing monkey masks. The sixth member was walking around in banana costume.

Looking around the room there were other creatures among us. There were a few leprechauns, centaurs, and unicorns. I saw a cat rub up against Jenny's leg. Jenny jumped not expecting it.

"Hi Jenny it's me Amalie," We heard from the white cat.

"Wow they go all out for Halloween around here," I said.

"And with good reason," I heard from an older girl dressed as a doctor covered in fake blood.

"Hi I'm Sunny, Amalie's older sister." Amalie jumped onto her sister's shoulder and perched herself as if she had been doing it for years.

"Hi, I'm Jenny and this is Sarah. What do you mean good reason?"

"I don't know if Mrs. Ullman went over Halloween in class for you; but the greeting ceremonies in town can get as crazy as New Year's Eve parties. I would be there but I had contact with someone last year. Each spirit is only allowed to visit once every ten years. There are spirits that like to play pranks and take over human bodies and then there are others who are out for vengeance. The school system banned high school students from attending because a student was seriously hurt a few years ago…" She was cut off in the middle of her explanation by an unexpected interrupter.

"Not another one of those flying things." It was Caitlyn. I quickly turned around and there she was dressed as a princess. How typical! She was not only acting like she was spoiled princess but her costume matched.

"How un-original, a princess. I thought you would have come up with something better," Cameron said. She was dressed in a medieval dress with fangs and fake blood on her face.

"Really Cameron, you dressed as a vampire? I didn't think you could sink any lower. But I was wrong," Caitlyn commented snidely.

"You got a problem with vampires Caitlyn," Cameron said defensively.

"No as long as their banned from the United States and have no powers."

I was so sick of her. I just wanted her to shut up. "That's it Caitlyn I've had enough of your mouth. Other species are here in the magic world so, so just get used to them being here. And another thing…" I was cut off just as I was about to really let her have it. Caitlyn pulled her wand and then I pulled mine out right away to defend myself.

"_ZIP IT_," Caitlyn yelled.

"_PROTECT_," I yelled half a second later while pointing my tiny wand at her. I could see a white transparent wall come out of my tiny wand pushing her beam back towards her. Caitlyn's silver beam was quickly shattered by my wall. Caitlyn's mouth became a closed zipper. I was ready to defend myself again from her.

"Ladies what is going on here," Mr. Oliver commanded as he stepped in-between us. I put my wand away. With him here I didn't think even Caitlyn would be dumb enough to try to cast another spell in front of him. But then again, this is Caitlyn. I don't think she has a lot of common sense when it comes to using her abilities with discretion. "_RELEASE_," Mr. Oliver said pointing his wand at her. The zipper from her mouth disappeared.

"How dare you," she yelled pointing her wand at me.

"Miss Hill, please lower your wand. Now we can discuss this in my classroom. I will need Cameron, Jenny and Bianca to join us. Let's go."

We walked into the spells classroom. "Sit down. Mrs. McGill will be here in a moment," Mr. Oliver instructed when we got in the room. Within a minute Mrs. McGill joined us. I flew over and sat on Jen's shoulder. It was kind of fun being able to fly everywhere.

"Alright girls, I need to know the truth. Keep in mind we can always look back at the surveillance tapes. I need to know who cast the first spell." She looked at us as if she already knew who did it.

"Caitlyn," Everyone in the room answered at the same time except Caitlyn. I tried not to laugh.

"Alright, then what was the reason for the fighting Miss. Hill?"

"Mrs. McGill they are always starting everything," she whined in frustration.

"Sarah is this true," Mrs. McGill asked me as she crossed her arms as she leaned back onto the wall.

"No not at all. She started by making fun of my costume. Then she moved on to Cameron's. Cameron asked her if she had an issue with vampires. Caitlyn said she wouldn't if they were banished from the U.S. and their powers were removed."

"Caitlyn is this true?"

"Mrs. McGill yes, but vampires are dangerous and disgusting creatures. They do nothing but murder people."

"That's enough Miss. Hill. Here at North Central Magic High School we do not tolerate this kind of behavior, both the prejudice and the fighting. We have plenty of witnesses to tell us who said what and cast the first spell. Being that you did both, you are suspended from school for three days. I will notify your family and you will be arriving home this evening. Do not forget girls, this will not be tolerated."

"That's not fair," Caitlyn complained as she started to cry.

"Miss Hill you should have thought about that before you cast the first spell," Grandma said as we all walked out of the classroom.

"This isn't over Sarah. I will find a way to get even with you," she said as Mr. Oliver was escorting her of the classroom.

"I would like to see her try," I said loud enough for her to hear. All of us with the obvious exception of Caitlyn went back to the party. We walked around and talked with some of our friends. A few hours passed by and we decided about ten to go back to the dorm. Mrs. Ethridge was in the common room with a few of the girls watching older scary movies and actually laughing. I didn't know what was worse, the cheesy fake blood or the horrifying fake tan the actors had.

While we were watching a very bad movie I noticed Bianca was there sitting alone. I flew over to sit by her. "Bianca, tell me something. Is Caitlyn always this bossy?"

"Yah that's just the way she's been since we were little."

"So you have been putting up with her being this mean for a long time?"

"I never thought of her as being mean just opinionated. She gets that from our Uncle Simon. I don't know if you knew but are cousins. We are the only ones in our family that are close in age. But whatever you do don't tell her I told you about this. She would kill me. Our Uncle Simon is the politician trying to get rid of the Vampire Protection Act. Ever since the Le Sang incident, they have been convinced that all vampires are bad."

"Wow that's ridiculous," I said.

"As I said, opinionated. No matter what I or anyone else says, nothing has changed her mind. What you have to understand about her is she has to know everything that is going on. Because this is the first time she would be going to a regular school, Uncle Simon got a hold of a list of the students attending here. He said knowing who she was going to school with would help her adjust from home school. I just think they were being nosy as usual. That's how she knew that your dad is the Assistant Director of the MFBI and Jenny's dad is President Barnes.

Uncle Simon has a knack for getting his way. He's got this charm about him that makes people stop and listen to what he has to say. That gives him an advantage in the political field. I'm not sure how it works completely. I think Caitlyn has the same ability but I'm not sure if she knows she has it. You also have to understand that Uncle Simon has taught her that anyone outside of humans shouldn't be treated as equals or have magic powers. If they had their way they would live on a planet of humans only."

"Thanks for the insight. I was just raised completely opposite than that. I can remember getting into trouble for repeating a racist word when I was a kid. I don't think my parents could have been any more upset. I know having my father as a member of the MFBI I can't get away with anything. He has a talent for seeing the truth. I have never been able to lie to him. I think that's why he is so good at his job."

"That must suck," she said.

"Yah, well it makes for an interesting childhood," I said as I laughed.

We sat there and watched the rest of the movie. When it was over I went to bed in my now oversized room. Jen came in after the movie and decided to send her mom an e-mail. I know she doesn't want to admit this but I think she is getting homesick. She's not the only one.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Now this was a total surprise.

Friday, November 21st

The first vacation could not have come fast enough. I couldn't believe for Thanksgiving we had the entire week off. This was the first time we would be leaving school and I couldn't be happier. Mrs. Ethridge's office was our departure point through the mirrors. This was the first time I traveled this way, and I couldn't wait to see what it was like to use the Mirror Network.

"Now ladies are we ready? All you need to do is imagine the mirror in your home. Sarah this one will be going to your living room. Oh and Jenny, your parents will be waiting for you at the Millers house. So in you go, Sarah first followed by Jenny." I looked at the mirror and remembered the full size one that was in the living room. When I stepped through the mirror It was like I was stepping through a door into another room. I was in my living room within a second.

"Sarah your home," My mom said with a big hug. The living room was full of people waiting to welcome us home including Jenny's parents and Michael. When he smiled at me it made my stomach flip a few times. I was distracted by him almost forgetting where I was.

"Oh Jenny's on her way now you might want to step aside," Katie said.

"Sorry I forgot," I said with a small laugh. I looked back at the mirror and Jenny came through. I walked out of the way towards the kitchen to get out of her way where my Grandmother Miller was here rolling out some scone dough.

"Hi Gran," I said as I walked into the kitchen.

"Sarah your back and my your more beautiful than ever," she said in her accent identical to Dad's. She hugged me covered in flour that was evidence of her being in one of her baking moods. Her hair long gray hair was pulled back in a bun with a few loose strands that were trying to hide the dark blue Miller eyes. Although Wales didn't celebrate Thanksgiving she usually took advantage of being able to spend time with us.

"Tell me have the boys at school been asking to call on you," she whispered to me as. I think she was trying to keep my dad from hearing her.

"Gran," I said nearly hissing though my teeth. I remembered to compose myself so I wasn't being disrespectful to her. "Are you forgetting I go to an all girl's school, there are no boys," I answered her matching her volume.

"Well then I'm sure it will be soon. I think I know someone who has an eye on you," she said quietly.

"Who is it," I asked her now embarrassed.

"I can't tell you. That would be cheatin' fate. But I know it when I see it. Anyways the visions have told me whom you will be with. Never doubt the divination my dear."

"Mum you aren't going on about that again are you," Dad butted in as usual, matching our whispers.

"Don't feel bad Princess. I can't even get it out of her who it is. When I was your age she did the same thing to me," Dad said while he was eating a scalding hot scone. He was trying to not burn his mouth. He could never wait long enough for them to cool. I don't blame him, they are really good. "Dad and Gran continued to bicker and I knew this would be a subject she would not let up on. Dad can be just as stubborn.

"Hey Rick we will see you later at our house for the game right," Alan asked.

"Yah Al, Ricky and I will be there. He should be back any time now. He said he had to finish up grading some papers," Dad answered him.

"Hey Sarah, you coming over with your dad for the game," Alan asked. I had no idea why he asked me that. I haven't watched a game outside of Thanksgiving Day with my dad since I was little. I watched Michael elbow Alan in the ribs hard and whisper something to him.

"No thanks, I think I will stay here and enjoy not having to think for a change. But thanks for asking. I will see you at dinner," I said as I escaped the awkward situation. I thought he would try to talk me into going over to their house for the game if I stayed in the room. I have a feeling he is up to something. I wouldn't be surprised if was planning on a prank of some kind.

Wednesday, November 26th

Over the past few days I helped Mom with the Thanksgiving planning as family members trickled in. My Aunt Vickie, Uncle Ervin, along with my cousins Mary and Kevin came in this morning. The house was starting to feel cramped. If it wasn't so cold out I would be outside either taking a walk or sitting under the willow tree in the back yard reading in dad's old hammock.

I was getting overwhelmed with all of the preparations and needed a break. "Mom, can I go to the mall with Jenny and Mary? It looks like we don't have much more to do around here. I'm starting to feel a little claustrophobic with everyone here."

"Sure honey, everything on today's list is done. I don't see that being a problem." I called Jenny to tell her we were going to the mall. Michael volunteered to take us. He told Jenny he had some shopping to do too. I didn't care who went. I just wanted to get out of the house.

About an hour later we all climbed into the Barnes's minivan. When Mary and I got to the van both she and Jenny got into the back seat. Michael opened the front passenger door for me. He was acting like he did back during summer break. I thought he was practicing for whoever this girl Sydney told me he wanted to ask out.

"Hey where's the mustang? I was looking forward to riding in it," Mary said.

"The heater needs to be fixed," he said as we got into the van. The ride there was long. It felt like everyone in the Omaha area had the same Idea.

"Let's meet at the food court at four," Michael instructed as we got out of the car. We all headed into the crowded mall.

"I don't think I've ever seen this many people here before," Jenny said looking around.

"If it is this crowded now imagine what Friday will be like. This is a mad house," Mary added. They were right, it was insanely crowded.

We made our way through the mall with some effort. Pre-Thanksgiving Day sales were in full swing. All three of us girls headed to The Alabaster Pot while Michael shopped on his own. Kelly was taking care of customers and she looked like she was swamped. We quickly picked out what we were buying and headed to the register.

"I got this one," she said to the other employee I didn't recognize. "I wondered when I would see you two again. If you can, could you help out Friday afternoon? Let's say ten until four?"

"I will have to check with my parents to see if they have anything planned. I'll call or e-mail you as soon as I know."

"Please let me know either way as soon as possible. If you could help you would be a life saver. Oh and I gave you two your employee discounts. Have a good thanksgiving." She immediately went to help the next customer. The store was getting more crowded by the minute. I came here to get away from crowds not to be in one.

After a few more hours of shopping we went to the food court for a break. Michael was there waiting for us. "Already done," he asked nervously.

"We just stopped in to get a drink. I think I need to go to the gourmet chocolate store and get my mom something she asked for," Mary said. "Jenny why don't you go with me so you can check it out."

"Hey Sarah, want to go…" Jenny was interrupted by Mary.

"She looks like she is wiped. Sarah why don't you stay here and avoid the crowds? Its right around the corner- we won't be gone long." I sat down bushed from the walking and fighting the mob. I could tell by Mary's tone she was up to something.

After they left I realized I was alone with Michael. I still felt the same way about him as I did over the summer. I didn't want to be the first to say something. I wondered if he could be the one Gran was talking about. I didn't think he liked me in that way. I tried to think of something else to keep myself from hoping for something that wasn't going to happen.

"I'm going to get a soda would you like one? You look exhausted," he asked me as if he was concerned about me.

"Sure just get me a cola," I said as I grabbed for money from my purse.

He put his hand on mine stopping me from getting my purse. The same warm goose bumpy feeling went through my arm like it did back on the summer. "Don't worry I got It," he said smiling at me. A few minutes later he was back with the drinks.

"Here you go," he said as he handed me the drink with a straw next to it a few minutes later. This was something he never did before. Very gentlemanly and I liked it.

"This it's nice of you to get this for me. Thanks," I said putting the straw in the cup.

"You're welcome. So I know everyone is asking you this but how is school going for you," he asked me.

"It's going good," I said sipping my drink. I want to smile at him but I don't want to send the wrong message. I concentrated on looking at my drink to distract me from staring at him.

"I see you like the necklace we got you," he said as he looked into my eyes.

"Yah, I like it a lot. It's become my favorite," I said back while playing with it.

"It sets off your eyes. The blue I mean. Kind of makes them stand out," he said softly. I sat up in shock. He really was flirting with me. When I looked at him he had a shy look on his face and his cheeks are turning a little red.

"Umm thanks," I answered back. I could feel the blood rush to my cheeks as I was turning red myself. Not knowing what to say there was a moment of silence.

"So this year your school is hosting the Valentine's Day dance?" He asked me.

"Yeah, I guess it's our turn. I don't know who is more excited about it the teachers or the other girls." I answered back. I am trying so hard not to smile at him.

"Has anyone asked you yet?"

"No, it's kind of hard to be asked on a date when you go to an all girl's school. I don't know a lot of guys that go to any of the schools."

"Good point. Well I was thinking. Would you like to go with me? You don't have to if you don't want to. I just thought since we know each other and all we could go…" I wanted to go with him but I wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do. After thinking about it for a moment I decided I will go with him as a friend. Then if he wants more he will ask. The last thing I wanted to do is assume he wants more when he only wants to be friends.

"Sure I would like to," I tried to cut his nervous rambling. Jenny does this all of the time. This was definitely a Barnes trait.

"Michael, Michael," I said louder as he was still talking.

"Yes," he answered.

"I said yes."

"Oh sorry got nervous," he said with a smile. I answered back his smile. "Well there is something else that I want to ask. I have wanted to ask you this since this summer. Well actually a few years now. Do you want to…umm…Be my girlfriend?"

My eyebrows raised and eyes widened in shock. A surge of excitement ran through my stomach. I felt like my insides were going to explode. I can't believe he is asking me out. This is something I really want to do. So I was the one Sydney was talking about. The one he was holding out for. I wondered exactly how long he's wanted to ask me out. I looked at his eyes that were full of excitement. I couldn't help myself. I couldn't fight it any more.

"Yes, of course I will." I couldn't help but smile at him. A part of me wanted to jump over the table and hug him.

He sat up in his chair with a huge smile. "Really, you're not joking? How do we do this? I've never had a girlfriend before."

"I don't know either. I've never been with anyone before either," He reached for my hand smiling at me. I instantly jerked it back before I realized he wanted to hold my hand.

"Sorry not used to this," I said to him as I let him. It was a nice feeling to have him hold my hand. I felt like our hands together fit perfectly.

"A-hem," I heard a few moments later. Mary and Jenny were there with their shopping bags. Jenny had a look of shock on her face as she saw us holding hands. Michael and I looked up at them embarrassed.

"It's time to go," he nervously said as he got up.

"Told you," Mary whispered to Jenny loud enough for me to hear.

Leaving the food court he grabbed both of our shopping bags and held my hand weaving his fingers with mine. When we got back to the van Michael held the door open for me and again once we got home. We said our goodbyes for now and went to our homes. I called Jenny.

"You have got to get over here. I need to tell you everything." Within a few minutes Jenny was in my room.

"Okay spill it. Don't leave out any details," Jenny commanded. I told her everything that happened. She told me Mary wanted to talk to her about the possibility of Michael and I dating and that's why she took her to the chocolate store to give us a few minutes alone.

"Who's asking who out," I heard my mom ask outside the door.

"You are going to find out anyways so I better tell you now. I have a date to the Valentine's Day Dance. Michael asked me this afternoon. Okay so there you have it." I just left out the girlfriend/boyfriend detail to my parents. I didn't know how he would feel about me telling everyone right away.

Later on he called me. I was excited to talk to him on the phone. "So if your family is anything like my family they all know."

"I didn't know what you told them. All I told Mom is about the dance. I haven't told her about us being official. Dad doesn't know yet. Jenny and Mary know, but that's it."

"Well actually that's perfect," Michael said.

"What did I say something bad," I asked.

"No-I just mean I can ask your dad if it's okay for us to go out. I think it would be a good idea if I asked him. I'm kind of scared of what he would do being in the MFBI. I'm afraid he would do something to me and I would never get to see you."

"You know we're probably going get lectured about responsible dating from both sets of parents," I told him.

"Dad already knows. I finally broke down and told him when I got back from school that it was you I wanted to ask out. That's why he invited you over to watch the game with us Friday night. I think he was trying to help me by having you come over so I could ask you out. His intentions were good but as usual the timing was terrible.

Your dad and Ricky are coming over for tonight's Bears game. It will be a perfect time. I am nervous about asking him."

"Your funeral," I said jokingly. "I'm sure everything will be alright."

"I just want to make sure everything is alright. You know I already miss you like crazy and you are just next door. Hey I have to go. I'll call you later and tell you what happened. Bye beautiful."

"Bye," I said as I hung up the phone.

After dinner Dad and Ricky went next door to watch the game with them. It's time to tell Mom. I have no idea where this conversation will go. She will probably ground me until I graduate college.

"Mom I need to talk to you privately in your room please?"

"Alright honey," she said in a concerned tone. My heart was racing. I felt like I was about to give her the worst news in the world. I better get this out fast.

"There's something I didn't tell you earlier and I need to let you know before Dad gets back from the game. Michael's going to ask Dad if we can start dating. He has already asked me and I said yes," I said quickly. There I said it. It was over with. I was expecting that lecture or a stern no.

"Agatha I need to talk to you," Mom yelled across the house. Mom looked like she was trying not to laugh.

"Mom it's not funny, does everyone need to know," I asked.

"Just wait this is something you are going to want to hear," Mom said back to me.

"Is everything alright in here," Gran asked.

"Yes its fine, looks like your vision was right Agatha."

"It's about time that boy asked you out. I was beginning to think he would never do it. It's like I told you-never doubt the divination," Gran said as she came over to hug me.

Then we had to wait to see what Dad, Alan and Katie have to say. If dad has his way I would probably never go out with anyone. An agonizing hour passed and nothing. I started pacing in the living room waiting for my father's fury to unfold.

I wondered if Michael was going to chicken out? I knew we really liked each other and we both are older than when both sets of parents when they started going out. With how protective my dad was, there is no telling what his reaction would be.

Mom finally gave me a cup of tea and told me to sit down and quit wearing out the carpet. Next thing I knew Katie was at our house more excited about this than I was.

"So what did my dad say," I asked her.

"Michael waited until half time to do it. Rick's face went a few shades of pink to purple, then he looked at Alan and then he said. "Al, I'm glad it's your boy and not some other family. Oh alright you have my blessing but there will be rules. We will discuss them together, both sets of parents and the two of you," she mocked my dad's voice. I sighed with relief that everything went alright.

"Your father would probably want to have the conversation after the game tonight," Mom said. We waited another hour and a half for the game to finish. I didn't think I could have been more nervous than I was. I tried to distract myself by reading but I kept thinking about Michael. I was still in shock that he asked me out. Someone who's an unbelievably gorgeous guy wants to be with me. I never would have thought it was him that I would end up dating. He waited to ask me out. In a way I feel honored and like I'm the luckiest girl in the world. All I could do when I think about him is smile.

Immediately after the game we went over to their house. I sat next to Michael at their dinner table and he held my hand. When dad saw us holding hands he gave a disapproving look. Mom lightly hit him on the arm giving him the hint to ease up. "Now the kids want to date. That is alright by me. But the two of you will have rules to abide by." Dad began his all too familiar lecture. He only did this when there was something major going on in the family or when one of us was in big trouble. "Having both of you in separate schools is a good thing. I want every, and I mean every activity with the both of you chaperoned. There will be a curfew and we are to know where the two of you are together at all times," Dad commanded.

Alan looked like he was fighting laughing. "Come on relax Rick. I seriously doubt these two will be alone enough to do anything stupid. I think if they are chaperoned and we as parents are as involved as much as we can there is nothing to worry about. You have raised a smart girl and she has a good head on her shoulders. If she is as smart as I know she is, she won't put up with anything. Besides she's already put him in his place a few times," he said giving me a wink.

"What are you trying to do Al, suck up?" Dad took a deep breath then relaxed as Alan suggested. "Okay I can't believe I'm saying this but I agree with Alan here."

Dad stood by Michael leaning into him while looking into his face like he was interviewing a suspect. "But I'm warning you boy if you mess this up. If you hurt my little girl in any way you will never be allowed to see her again. Got it?"

Michael had a look of terror on his face after Dad gave him the ultimatum. "Yes sir," he answered nervously. I lightly squeezed his hand to let him know everything will be alright.

"Rick honey I think you're taking this a little too seriously. You are not at work and Michael isn't a criminal brought in for questioning. Alan's right; both of them have got a good head on their shoulders. I do have to give the kids credit. They are older than when we all were engaged. They are both far more mature than we were at their age. Everything will be fine and sit down you are even making me nervous."

Alan sat back with his hands behind his head leaning the chair back. "I do have to tell you Cowboy, It's a good thing you asked during half time. With how badly the Bears lost tonight you may not have stood a chance," I could feel Michael's hand loosen up in mine. He was calming down after dad's threat. Once the tension in the room finally broke Alan, Katie and My mom started to laugh.

Dad sat down and they finished setting our dating rules. It took about a good hour to for them to finish. Alan seemed to be more laid back about it then Dad did. He actually seemed happy that we were together.

"Now with everything settled, I am going home. Sarah, Janey I will see you two at home alright," Dad announced.

"Yes we will be there soon. I love you honey," Mom said giving Dad a kiss. I didn't know if I wanted to be revolted or admire their love for each other for all of these years.

Alan, Katie and Mom were on the other side of the room back to discussing tomorrow's plans. I put my head on his shoulder relived that the lectures were over. There was something about his cologne I liked. I couldn't place it but it was a comforting and familiar scent. "Are you alright," he turned to put his forehead against mine. He gave me a big smile that put me at ease.

"Yah, I'm just glad that's over with. I had no idea what to expect. It's nice to see your parents are pretty happy about all of this."

"Are you kidding? Dad has been bugging me over the last few years about dating. I think he was ready for me to start dating before I was. You have no idea how happy you have made me today." He started to play with my hair tucking it back behind my ear.

"You're not the only one who is happy here." I couldn't help but smile back at him.

I lost my train of thought and forgot what I was going to say next.

"Tell me what you're thinking about."

"Really? I just thought that was something guys asked in the movies." I could see Alan tapping Katie's arm and pointing to us. "Well right now I feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I would talk more but we have an audience."

"Sarah we need to be getting home. Tomorrow is a long day," Mom said. She turned back to Katie. "We will see you tomorrow. I think the first game starts at ten."

"So I guess I will see you tomorrow," Michael said kissing my forehead.

"Okay tomorrow," I said as I got up.

When we got home Mom followed me to my room. I plopped down on the bed laying down on one of my pillows. "Mom I don't see what the big deal is. Were not planning a wedding here. You are all treating this like it's the biggest controversy of the century."

"This is the first any of us had to deal with dating. We knew it would happen sooner or later. We just didn't expect it to be the two of you. We thought Ricky would be first. Don't get me wrong. I'm thrilled it's Michael you have chosen. From what Katie has told me, they are just as happy the two of you are together.

You have to understand that this is new to your father. You are his baby girl and it will be hard for him to accept you are not so little anymore. When you were born, he used to dream of the day he could intimidate your boyfriend by polishing his grandfather's sword," she said with a laugh.

I know I am the last person in the world you'll want to talk to when it comes to relationships, but if you ever need anything I'm here for you. I know you wanted to wait to start dating but sometimes life has other plans than we do. You can't expect everything to always happen as you want it to. You need to leave some room for wonderful surprises. I think Michael qualifies as one. Now it's late and I have a lot to do tomorrow. I'm going to bed," she hugged me and went to her room.

I went into the kitchen to get something to drink. Ricky was there washing dishes. "Hey Punk, how's it going? I haven't gotten much of a chance to catch up with you since I got home." I grabbed a dish towel and dried the dishes just after he rinsed them. Dad has been procrastinating on fixing the dishwasher.

"So Mike asked you out? That's one I never expected. I knew he liked someone but you were the last one I suspected. It took me forever to get him to tell me. I think he was worried about how I would react. I told him if he hurts you I would have to kill him."

"No, you didn't!" I was shocked he would say that to him.

"Your right I didn't say it, but I wanted to." I hit him with a dish towel at him while scowling at him.

"Yah it's not like you have a girl yet," I teased.

"Well there is someone. I'm thinking about asking her out. I met her at the dance last year. She goes to North Central's college."

"You're not going to leave me hanging? Who is she?"

"I don't know if you know her or not. She is a different than most girls," he said looking out the window and smiling. "I'm just not sure how Mom and Dad will react."

"Who is it," I nagged. He took a deep breath. I could tell that he was afraid to tell me.

"Sydney Black."

"Whoa Sydney, that is so cool. I know her pretty well. Her cousin Ryndee is my lab partner. I know what she is. I don't think Mom or Dad will have any issues with her. Do you keep in touch with her?"

"Yah we e-mail each other pretty much every day. I don't think she has figured out you're my sister. Mike and some of the other guys have been trying to get me to ask her out, but I don't know what she will say. Now I know what he went through before he asked you out."

"Actually she knows you're my brother." I thought that this was the perfect opportunity to get back at him for telling me he was going to threaten Michael. "She asked me the first day of school if you are my brother and I told her you were. Don't worry I told her all about you, both the good and the bad." He had a look of shock on his face. "I told her you like to play basketball and you are good at chess and other strategic games. Oh and I couldn't leave out your collection of flying unicorns epically the pink and purple glittered one." He dropped a plate back into the dish water.

"Flying unicorns? Why would you tell her that?" He was starting to get mad. I had to laugh at his gullibility.

"You will believe anything I say. Boy the Miller truth skills flew right past you. Don't worry I didn't tell her anything. We've never really talked about you." Ricky splashed dishwater on me. About a second later he started laughing too.

"You better to talk to her soon if you want to ask her out. She is a really nice girl and I wouldn't be surprised if she said yes." I had a feeling there was more to this friendship he had with Sydney, like he was keeping something from me.

"What are you two squabbling about now?" Dad came into the kitchen and our conversation. I could tell my brother had a long night of conversations ahead of him.

"Now would be a good time. Do you want me to stay or give you two a minute?"

"You can stay. I was there when Michael asked Dad."

"Son what is it?"

"Dad there is a girl I am interested in asking out. Well she isn't human Dad. She is a vampire." I was waiting for the time bomb to go off. It was bad enough he had to deal with Michael and I earlier. Now he will have to worry about Ricky dating on the same night.

"So what's the problem?"

"You don't have any issues with her being a vampire?"

"I have no problem with that at all. Your sister's right. You better hurry up and ask her before someone else does. Where does she go to school?"

"She goes to school with me. Her cousin and I become pretty good friends."

"Good, well looks like you and I need to have a talk. You might want to ask Alan about a faculty member dating a college student. Just to be sure everything is alright." This was my clue to go.

"I'm going to bed now. I will see you in the morning. Goodnight punk, goodnight Daddy." I said giving him a peck on the cheek.

"Goodnight squirt," Ricky answered back. I usually hated being called squirt but I probably had it coming for calling him punk.

I went into my room and Mary was back from the family room. She came over to me putting her hands on my shoulders and jumped. "I knew it, I knew it, and I knew it," she sang.

"Okay I get it. You knew it. Thanks, now the entire family knows and I highly doubt that we will get a moments peace together."

"I can't believe he asked you out. I mean after last year's dance he was the guy most of the girls drooled over. So my little cousin bagged Mike Barnes."

"Bagged? You say that like he is animal caught on a hunt. Besides from what he has told me he's been wanting to ask me out and he just now finally got the courage to do it. I'm still having a hard time believing this is happening. I just wish I could get some sort of a clue about how to do this…"

My rapid and panicky verbiage was cut off by a paper airplane flying into my room and landing on my bedside table. On one of the wings it read. "_**To my Sweet Sarah,**_"

"Oh looks like we're starting the love notes," Mary pointed to the letter. My hands shook not knowing what to expect.

My sweet, beautiful Sarah,

Hi baby I have been waiting a while to tell you how I feel about you. I was scared you would laugh at me and our friendship would be ruined. Both of our families know now and I'm not sure to be happy it's out in the open, or terrified that everyone will try to run our relationship for us.

Thank you for agreeing to be my date for the Valentine's Day Dance and for being my girl. I hope you sleep well tonight. I can't wait to see you tomorrow.

_**Michael**_

"How nice he has a nickname for me already," I told her. "Hey how do I send one back to him," I asked her.

"Oh you write your note down, fold it into a plane and cast the spell. You did bring your wand home with you I hope," she asked. I looked at her with an expression that told her she didn't need to ask.

"What's the spell," I asked her anxiously.

"You point your wand at it, picture his face clearly in your mind and say his first and last name and the location. The more information the better," I quickly grabbed a blank sheet of paper and wrote back to him.

_My Dearest Michael,_

_ Hi babe, Thank you for your letter and invitation to the dance. I am excited that you were the one to ask me to the dance and to be your girl. I am still in a happy shock that you chose me of all the girls you can pick from. I wish you a good night's rest too and I will see you tomorrow."_

_Your Sweet Sarah_

I folded the letter and wrote on the just like he did with my letter. I thought of him so clearly it felt like he was there in the room with me. I pointed my wand and cast the spell.

"_MICHAEL ALLEN BARNES, HOME, BEDROOM."_

The letter quickly zoomed off and disappeared into my vanity mirror. "I hope he gets it," I said after it disappeared. I read his letter at least three times before I took a long hot bath. There's so many people staying here I doubt I will get any hot water in the morning.

Thursday, November 27th

I woke up to the smell of turkey cooking in the oven along with fried eggs and bacon. It was a cold typical Nebraska fall morning. I could hear Dad and Ricky walking on the roof. I could only assume they were starting to put the Christmas lights on the house. Over the past few years this became a neighborhood competition. Dad still thinks last year you could see our house from the highway.

I got dressed and headed for the kitchen. About half of the family was already in the kitchen keeping busy with all of the food preparations including my Uncle Bill. He was my mom's uncle and one of the best cooks in the family. He could just look at the turkey and tell you if it was done. To this day nobody has gotten sick from under cooked turkey.

I ate breakfast at the table in the dining room. The eggs were fresh out of the frying pan scalding my mouth as I ate them. I didn't care this was so yummy. "Looks like this will be a busy day for everyone," I commented.

"It usually is," Mom said back.

"Hey Kelly wants to know if I can work tomorrow at ten. With all of the… _discussions_ last night I forgot to ask."

"That's fine. Just let your dad know you are working."

"I will. I also need a ride to work tomorrow. I don't think I will be able to find a parking spot if I drove. I'm just happy I don't have to work at five in the morning with all of the insane shoppers." I got up from my seat and hand washed my dishes from breakfast. I stared out of the window looking at the willow tree in the yard in a trance. I started to think about Michael again. I don't know why but it feels like he is constantly on my mind. I wondered if I am over consumed about him or if this is normal.

"SARAH!" I saw a set of hands waiving in front of my face breaking my trance. "Sarah, the dishwasher is fixed. Kevin did it this morning." Aunt Vickie was next to me looking like she was trying not to laugh. "Sit down and have some juice." She guided me to a chair at the table and handed me a glass of orange juice. As I sat down I realized I was nearly humiliated in front of half of my family.

It was well known for those who want to stay clear of the kitchen until dinner. You go downstairs to the family room to watch a football game. Jenny's family was joining us for dinner this year. Michael came over and sat next to me on the couch. "Hi happy Thanksgiving beautiful," he whispered in his smooth voice. I wasn't used to being complimented like this, but it's something I could get used to. He put his arm around me then kissed my forehead. "Is this alright? I don't want to make you uncomfortable," he whispered again.

"Actually I like it. Happy Thanksgiving handsome," I said cuddling into him.

I knew I was nervous about all of this, but for some reason sitting there with him was serene.

For dinner the dining room table was extended out with the leaves that were usually stored underneath the table. This year Mom insisted on using place cards. Michael sat next to me on my left and Jenny was on the other side of him. Mom was at the head of one side of the table and Dad as usual was at the other side. Dad pulled out his newest knife he bought from a celebrity chef and cut the turkey. Dad will never admit this, but he is just as hooked on watching cooking shows and buying the gadgets as Mom is.

After dinner was over I started on the dishes. Michael jumped in and helped me with them. When we were done with clean up. I needed to get out of the kitchen for a minute. It was still hot from the cooking from earlier. The back porch was empty and headed out to get some fresh air. I sat down on the ice cold swinging chair. The coolness felt nice against my over heated back. I needed to think about how much has changed over the past few days.

I was having a hard time grasping how I was now dating someone. I felt like I was on my own with this. I was scared and happy at the same time. A few minutes after sitting there looking at the stars the sliding glass door opened. I was annoyed that I just lost what little bit of privacy I had.

"May I join you?" It was Michael. The butterflies flew throughout my stomach again as I saw him. He was in his Bellevue West letter man jacket.

"Sure," I told him I couldn't help but smile while looking at him.

"It's a little crowded in there. It's nice to get out here to breathe for a minute," he said as he sat down next to me. He reached for my hand lacing our fingers together then kissed the back of my hand.

"Aren't you cold," he asked me.

"I am now that you mention it. I came out here to cool off. I'll be right back. I'm going to go and get my coat." I got up to go inside.

"Here this will keep you warm." He took off his jacket and put it on me. "I always wondered what you would look like in it. You look nice, then again you've always been beautiful." He put his arm around me like he did earlier.

"Hey I was wondering, why didn't you ask me out before?"

"I've been wanting for a long time to tell you how I feel about you. I didn't want to ruin things. I tried to wait it out, to see if there was someone else that may come along for either one of us. Then when I saw you again I was amazed by you. Everything about you I was intrigued by," he reached to my cheek and a shot of excitement ran through me. I wondered if he could be trying to kiss me. "Your beauty, your voice, all I wanted to do was be with you. Now that I am with you..," His slowly moved his face close to mine.

"Sorry I didn't mean to interrupt," I heard Dad say. "Michael your mother is looking for you. She said it's time to go home." We both stood up.

I took off his jacket to hand it back to him. "Keep it baby. I've want you to have it," he whispered to me. He kissed my forehead and we said goodbye.

Dad came outside and stood next to me. I turned around to look at the leaf filled yard. This was awkward. "Looks like I need to finish putting up the lights."

"Yah sounds good. Kelly wants me to work tomorrow and I will need a ride to work. I would drive myself but I don't think there will be any parking spaces left."

"That's fine I will take you. Just let me know when you are ready to go." There was a long uncomfortable silence again. I didn't want to be here to talk about my relationship or anything with him. I was a little upset that he interrupted what could have been my very first kiss.

"It's cold I'm going inside now."

"Yah," he said still looking at the yard. I quickly went inside to avoid a lecture from him.

Monday, December 1st

The rest of the break went by too fast. We tried to spend time together. There were movie nights with the families and dinners at each other's houses. Before I knew it, it was time to go back to school. We went to Jenny's house for lunch with all of our things packed. After we said our goodbyes we stepped through the mirror. I was back in Mrs. Ethridge's office.

"Welcome back ladies," she said to us. "I hope you had a good week off?" She said greeting us. "Good news is Mr. Oliver will have the list of those who have made the dueling teams for you to look at tomorrow morning. It will be posted in the common room."

Unpacking seemed to take no time at all. I had Michaels jacket with me. I missed him and his jacket smelled like him. If I couldn't have him here with me this would be the next best thing. I fell asleep easily last night. It beats tossing and turning for a few hours.

This morning there was a small crowd of girls surrounding the bulletin board in the commons area. I could only assume it was the dueling team posting. I went over to look to see if we made the teams.

"Congratulations you made the team, "Jenny Said. I couldn't believe it. I knew she was telling the truth but I had to see for myself. Looking further down the list I noticed Corrigan, Ryndee, Jenny, Ella, Cameron and I were the only ones who made it at the high school level.

"WHY DIDN'T I MAKE THE TEAM? I am more qualified than all of those girls out there and if you don't put me on the team right now you are going to regret it," I heard Caitlyn yelling from the outside dorm hallway.

"Sounds like someone isn't happy with the results," Corrigan said.

"Now is not the time, nor the place to discuss this. Now we will have a meeting with Mrs. Mc Gill about this after school today," I heard Mr. Oliver say to her.

"No Mr. Oliver, I want to be on the team NOW!"

"Miss. Hill this is the exact reason why you didn't make the team. Your temperament is not good and with your attitude is not right for competition. If you were to cast a spell with an over heightened emotion the spell could go wrong. It could kill someone."

"Well if you won't put me on the team, then I will just have to find a school that will. I'm sick of this school. Everyone is so unfair to me. I'm calling my Uncle." She actually stomped her foot and crossed her arms like a four year old being told no.

"Alright then, just follow me to my office. I will let you call from my phone," Mrs. Ethridge said.

All of the teachers seemed to be in good moods. We were reminded to study for semester finals. I managed to keep up on homework with no problem. Ryndee needed help with Chemistry so I offered to help her with homework during study period.

"Just remember were making a simple sleeping potion," I reminded her.

"Oh I'll never get this subject down. You seem to be a natural at it. I can get Math and some other subjects, but I'm stumped with this one," Ryndee whined.

"Well I noticed that like me, you are good at problem solving right," I asked her.

"Yes but that's different. This isn't a problem this is a catastrophe."

"No, I mean look at it as a problem that needs to be solved. It's a one, one, two three potion. All potions start with a quart of water. If you add one crushed poppy seed, two valerian leaves, and three sloth hairs and you get a sleeping potion. It's not written like that but Dr. Zima said during the lecture with this potion it wouldn't matter what order it went into the water." I stepped back and let her try at her potion.

"I need one quart of boiling water. One crushed poppy seed, two minced valerian leaves and three sloth hairs. Is that right," she confirmed.

"Exactly, so let's put it to the test. Your water is boiling. Now all you need to do is add your ingredients. When mine was done it came up a purplish color."

I watched as Ryndee nervously prepare her ingredients. She then added them to make the potion. The black from the water in the cast iron cauldron slowly turned dark blue.

"I knew I did something wrong. This is the wrong color," Ryndee said looking crushed.

"Hold on and wait a minute. Remember what he said our first week. Patience is the key. Let's give it a final stir then let this sit for a minute." We sat there and waited for what seemed an eternity. Then out of nowhere the color changed.

"Ryndee look," I exclaimed as it turned purple. Looking at the swirling purple liquid it reminded me of how things in my life in the magic and mundane world were mixing into one chaotic mass.

"Finally, I got one right. Now if I could only do this during finals I will be alright," she said with a laugh.

"Look at it this way. Can you cook?" She nodded her head. "Well this is just like cooking. All you need to do is follow the directions like a recipe. Don't forget always label and date the bottle you place it in. Remember what the book said, potions get stronger with age," Ryndee pulled out a small jar and placed the potion in it. Labeled and dated the potion.

"Now I have a cure for my mother's insomnia," she said.

"If your mom is having issues with sleeping, this will work. I remember taking it as a kid whenever I was sick. My mom insisted on resting so my body would heal from whatever I had. I just didn't know at the time it was a potion. I'm not trying to be nosy but is everything okay?"

"I'm not sure if you want to hear my family's problems. But I feel like I can trust you. Your dad works for the government and well maybe he knows something he can help with it. Someone is trying to abolish the Vampire Protection Act."

"What exactly is that? I've heard of it, but I'm not sure I fully understand it."

"It was passed back in 1901 to protect humans from hunting and killing us and from us killing Humans. It works a lot like your protective laws. Some are saying were unstable and we can't be trusted. It's been a fight since the law was passed. But an anti-vampire politician said he has found a loophole. Because of the actions from one bad vampire a few years ago, he is saying that all of us are like that."

"Do you mind if I asked what happened?"

"Sure, did you ever hear of Samuel Le Sang," she asked me.

"Sure my dad was on the team that arrested him for going on a killing spree if I remember correctly." I could never forget it. We hardly saw Dad during that time. I can remember waking up to him holding me and telling me he loves me and missed me.

"Yes and now because Le Sang was a vampire gone bad, Senator Simon Dixon wants to abolish the protection law and banish all vampires out of the United States. Problem is where would we go? The United States is the most lenient for all of us witches and vampires. It's the world's haven for magical beings. There's some countries that don't allow us to even visit. England seems to be the only other country I can think of that might welcome us."

"Well I can talk to my dad about it, but I can't guarantee anything. If it helps I'll be there for support for you. We need to get going," I said to her as the bell rang.

"Aren't we the nosy one around here," I heard from someone behind me. I turned around and Caitlyn was following me. I wasn't surprised.

"Unlike you I do get concerned when my friends are upset. Why what's it to you," I answered back as I hurried to my next class.

"So you're calling it concern or it's just an excuse to butt into other students business."

I had enough and I wanted to explode yelling at her but I didn't want to stoop to her level. I took a deep breath then I turned around to her. I could feel my face turning red with anger.

"You may be a spoiled rotten brat who gets everything handed to her when she stomps her foot. You are malicious and cruel. If and only if you treat other species like humans I will think about you being a decent person. They have been great friends to me and everyone else around here all year, and I am tired of you treating them like they shouldn't be here. Like I said before; we all have the gift of magic so get used to us all being here. Until then I have a class to get to and I don't want detention." I pushed myself past her and walked quickly to the classroom and sat down.

"Miss. Miller is everything alright? You don't look well," Mrs. Taylor asked.

"Everything is just peachy," I answered cynically.

"Well why don't you go and see Mrs. McGill for a few minutes to calm down.

"Fine," I groaned. I grabbed my things and headed downstairs to Mrs. McGill's office.

When I got to the office I was welcomed by her receptionist again. "Miss Miller. It's nice to see you again. Follow me, Mrs. McGill is expecting you." I followed her into the office and slumped down onto the chair.

"Would you like some tea Sarah," Grandma offered.

"Sure why not."

"Mrs. Taylor tells me you and Caitlyn still aren't exactly getting along."

"Ya think? How did you find out this fast," I asked her in shock.

"Well let's just say that communication is very good here between the staff. So what can I do to help with the situation," she asked.

"Not unless you can make humans be nice to other species, nothing. We haven't even been back for a full day yet and she's already started her cruelty. I can't believe she is acting like this.

I'm sorry but I just don't get how some people think they are better than others, let alone don't like someone just because they are different. She practically threw Sage out of their room and then makes fun of her. She treats Corrigan, Ryndee and Sydney like they have the black plague. She thinks she is being funny when she makes fun of them but all she is doing is being mean."

"Well it's nice to see you have your mother's compassion. I know it can be hard to understand why people act the way they do. But unfortunately there are some who believe so strongly that they either can't or don't want to change what they believe in. I'd bet she's just as self conscience about herself as the average girl. She may be acting out to cover the way she feels about herself. Girls like her tend to lash out brutally to girls whom they may be jealous of. Maybe she just needs some time.

Now to answer the question of how I knew what was going on. Do you remember what we told you during your orientation? We told you that all of the class rooms and hallways are monitored for security?" She pressed a button from the underside of her desk. A bookshelf slid to the side and there were about forty monitors with surveillance video on it. Every class room was on video along with the halls, offices, cafeteria and each of the common rooms.

"There is a spell placed on the surveillance system that alerts me when there is a problem. I will hear an alarm and it will alert me to look for the monitor with the flashing light on it. It's how we know there either is a problem or will be one," she sat down her chair then added more tea to her cup. She sat back and sipped at her tea while we talked.

"Do you think Ryndee's family will be alright with the Dixon politician trying to ban them from the U.S.?"

"I'm sure they will be fine. This one does seem to be more confident than the last one."

"Ryndee said this one thinks there could be a loophole he could use to his advantage. Is that possible," I asked as I sat up to drink my tea.

"Well I suppose it is possible. Or he may be saying that as a scare tactic. It's common for these politicians fight for things that will make folks remember them on Election Day. I wouldn't worry about it too much. I am sure there are Pro-Vampire Protection Act politicians looking into it. You are too much of a mix of both of your parents. You have your fathers ability to problem solve and your mother's compassion.

Since you're here there is one thing I wish to discuss with you. I was waiting until later but since you are here we can talk about it now. Have you ever thought what you would do after you graduate from here?"

"No not yet. Isn't it too soon," I asked her.

"No not at all, in fact it can help you decide what classes to take next year. That's if you decide to stay here. We have an accelerated degree program that will help with getting you through college sooner if you know what degree you want to go for."

"With the magic world how does it work? I have a general idea about how college works in the mundane world. Is it similar," I asked her as I poured more tea into my cup.

"Well it's similar to the mundane world. Someone would attend here for college and graduate with a bachelor's degree. Then if the student wants to go for a master's degree they would attend at either the Creole or Hudson Schools. For a doctorate you would need to transfer a mundane College." She looked at the clock on her desk and stood up.

Wow look at the time. The class hour is almost over. You need to get back to get your assignment for the day. Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, I will see you later and thanks for the tea."

She came over and gave me a hug. "Just remember if you ever need anyone to talk to my door is always open."

"Thanks. I'll see you later," I said as I grabbed my bag and left for my next class.

After school I reported to the gym for dueling practice. Coach Baxter, Mrs. Taylor and Mr. Oliver greeted us when we arrived. I sat down with Jenny and the rest of the girls.

There were four sets of dueling fields. Each rectangular box had two circles one on each side of them. A solid blue circle was in the middle with two lines circling them, a green and red reminding me of a multi colored target. They were surrounded by big blue ropes. It looked like an extended boxing ring.

"Welcome to dueling practice," Mr. Oliver began. "We will begin with testing you for your strengths and weaknesses. After that we will work on the types of spells you will be allowed to use for dueling. This will give you some time to learn your spells along with the rules and regulations. Coach Baxter here will be helping enforcing the rules."

Coach Baxter started pacing in front of all of us. "The object of the duel is to have as little points as possible. Three points means the round is over. During the tournament two out of three round victories wins. There are two circles one on each side of the dueling field. The solid blue circle in the middle is where you stand. The object of dueling is to knock your opponent outside of the red line. If you are knocked out in between the blue circle and the green line it counts for one point. Between the green and red lines it is two points. If you are knocked completely out of the red circle or step foot on the red line it is worth three points and you're out for the round. If you cast a spell and it completely misses your opponent it's an automatic point for the one who cast the spell.

The use of immobility spells is prohibited and will give you maximum points for the duel and will disqualify for the rest of the season. Whatever victories you have had will be void. This is where you need to keep calm whenever you are in the dueling ring."

We were matched up with our practice partners. Jenny was teamed up with a girl named Marissa and I was with Sydney. This would give me a chance to get a chance to get to know my brothers potential girlfriend better.

One team member would be assigned to attack and the other was to defend. I was on the defense side. Mrs. Taylor told me I could use the shield, and repel spells while Sydney can use the push and impel spells. We took our places in the dueling rings ready to fight. Coach Baxter was ready with her whistle in her hand ready to blow it.

"Now on my whistle cast your spell," she said. "One, two, three," The whistle blew.

"Shield," I yelled pointing my wand in front of me. I looked over at Sydney and she was knocked down past the red line. I was the only one on the defensive side that was still standing.

We repeated this about four more times with a combination of spells. I could tell Sydney was getting irritated with me.

"Alright, now reverse," Mr. Oliver said as he was taking notes on his clipboard. The same thing happened. I don't understand why I am the only one who didn't get pushed outside of the red line. We switched partners periodically with other girls and no matter who I was with I ended up doing well. Sydney was able to defeat all of the other girls except me. This went on for about an hour before practice was called for the day.

Coach gave us a brief lecture before she dismissed us. "Now training will be every day after school. If this interferes with your school work, you will be pulled off of the team immediately. Good work today all of you, we will see you tomorrow." I grabbed my back pack and headed out of the gym.

"Sarah wait up." Sydney ran to catch up with me. "You have to tell me what that was all about."

"Okay I will tell you. I don't want a lot of people knowing about this. Just promise me you won't tell anyone here. I know that being on the team I may not be able to avoid exposing my level of powers. I'm a golden witch." She looked at me as if she already knew it. Let me re-phrase that. I'm a natural golden witch." I expected her to freak out. She looked surprised to hear what I told her."

"Whoa, Ricky told me you were powerful, but I didn't expect this. So I guess this means the other schools won't stand a chance against us.

Last year Mike took silver. I didn't do so well. I didn't even make it to the final round." We were walking to the cafeteria to meet the other girls for dinner. "It does explain a lot. I'm only at a natural silver level. If you two ever get into a fight I will know who not to bet against. I wonder if that is the reason why Mr. Oliver wanted you on the team."

"So how well do you and Ricky know each other? He mentioned you two talk a lot during Thanksgiving break."

"Pretty good," I could see her starting to blush. "We e-mail each other and try to get together. The problem is because he is now faculty it might be an issue if we were to start dating. He said he needs to get clearance from the school board before we go out on any dates.

Sarah can I trust you with something?" I nodded my head. "I really like him. I mean I really, really like him. I haven't told anyone because of him teaching at the academy. I think about him all of the time and I just wish we can get an answer about us dating." She wasn't telling me everything. It was like she was hiding something.

"Did he tell you about any of my other abilities?"

"Yes something about seeing the truth?"

"Well what I am getting at is I have a feeling there's something you are not telling me. Don't be afraid say anything. I can keep a secret." I could tell she was afraid. As if she was going to reveal a deep secret that must never be told. She looked at me and took a deep breath.

"We have been secretly dating since last year," She was whispering to me. "We met at the dance and we have been together ever since. I can't believe I am confessing this out loud, but I love him. Nobody knows about this outside of my parents. I'm not even sure if yours know. Mike doesn't know either. With his dad being the President we can't risk it.

So how are you two doing?" I could tell she wanted to change the subject quickly to avoid others from over hearing us.

"So far we are alright. We haven't been together for a week. It's a little too soon to tell yet. But I'm hoping things go really well. He took me by total surprise. I would talk to Jenny about it, but I am not sure how she will take me talking about her brother."

"I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable about talking about Ricky."

"No that's fine. Jenny is a little more sensitive. I'm just hoping she finds someone herself."

"Well thanks for letting me vent that out to you. Mary's good at listening but lately she has been becoming distracted herself. I know she really likes someone but hasn't told him yet. Hey I will get the list of spells from Mr. Oliver so we can practice more."

"That would be nice. I think I have an unfair advantage and I kind of feel bad not letting you win a match," I said as we sat down.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure I will win at least one against you," she said laughing.

When we got back to the dorm for the evening we were told there would be a meeting in the commons area. From what I understood this didn't happen unless there was an issue with one of the girls. I was pretty sure it would involve Caitlyn after her temper tantrum this morning.

When we got to the meeting, Grandma and Jenny's Dad were there with Mrs. Ethridge. Alan led the meeting. "Good evening ladies, for those of you who don't know who I am I am Alan Barnes President of the American Magic School system. There has been a slight change of students among you. Now we would like for you to hear it from us firsthand what is going on. Caitlyn Hill will not be joining us for the rest of the year. She has transferred to the Creole School of Magic in Louisiana. Now I know this may come as a shock to some of you, but we feel it is the best thing for everyone involved. Because Bianca is her cousin she may be visiting periodically. If you see her we think it would be best if the transfer is not mentioned. With that said are there any questions?" Nobody said anything. If there were crickets in the room you would have been able to hear them chirp.

"Well ladies it is now seven and if you would like to agree on a DVD we can get that started," Mrs. Ethridge said breaking the silence. Jenny got up and went to her dad to talk about something. When she was done she told me she was going to the room to work on homework for the evening.

Alan walked over to me. "Congratulations on making the team. I got a chance to look over the list last night. I hope you don't mind but I already knew and told your parents. I think they wanted to call you last night to tell you. You have no idea how hard it was for me to keep your dad from telling you.

"Thanks, I'm looking forward to competing. I think it will be fun."

"It usually is. It is taken pretty seriously. It's the closest thing we have to school sports. Our schools are too small to have normal athletic teams. Dueling has filled in the void. Now I know you have issues with being in the spotlight. I have to warn you now it will be televised and all of the schools will be there for most of the competition. Will you be alright with that?"

"Yah I should be fine with it. I made it through speech class last year without getting sick like Jen did," I said with a chuckle.

"Well that is good to hear. How is everything with Michael?" I was shocked. I couldn't believe he asked me about this. It's his Son I was going out with and he is asked me instead of Michael. This was awkward.

"Good so far, it hasn't even been a week. Besides shouldn't you be asking him this and not me?" I didn't want to admit that I already missed him.

"You are right, but I think he is afraid to talk to me about this kind of stuff. I know he really cares about you. I can tell he would do anything for you. Since the pool incident he has become protective of you. If I didn't know any better I would think that's when he started to have feelings about you.

Don't tell him I talked to you about this. But if you could, remind him I am here for him to talk to if he needs it alright. Now I have to go. Katie is expecting me for dinner at home. Oh and your parents send you their love. Call your dad once in a while. He won't own up to it, but he misses you."

"Hey Alan, while I have you here. Did the board decide on letting Ricky and Sydney date? The only reason why I am bringing this up is because she is anxious to find out if they can date now or need to wait for her to graduate."

"Oh it's not up to the board. It is up to me. There are some stricter rules they need to follow. Because she is in college at a separate school and he teaches at the high school level, there shouldn't be any issues. Thanks for reminding me.

"Alright, see you later," I said going to my room. Jenny wasn't the only one who had a lot of homework to finish. I went to my room and after I finished my homework I e-mailed Michael to tell him about my day and making the team. Writing him was becoming a new routine.


End file.
